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He  saw  an  arm  and  a  head  come  up. — Page  240. 


2>a\>e  porter  Series 


DAVE   PORTER 
AND   THE   RUNAWAYS 

OK 

LAST  DAYS  AT   OAK  HALL 

BY 

EDWARD   STEATEMEYEE 

Author  of  "Dave  Porter  at  Oak  Hall,"     "The  Lakeport  Series," 
"  Old  Glory  Series,"    "  Pan- American  Series,"  etc. 

ILLUSTRATED  BY  H.  RICHARD  BOEHM 


BOSTON 
LOTHROP   LEE    &    SHEPARD   CO. 


\m 


AT  CHAWS.  HSLL 


Published,  March,  1913 


Copyright,  1913,  by  Lothrop,  Lee  &  Shepard  Co. 


All  Rights  Reserved 


Dave    Porter    and    the    Runaways 


IRctwoofc    tprees 

Berwick  &  Smith  Co. 

Norwood,  Mass. 

U.  S.  A. 


PREFACE 

11  Dave  Porter  and  the  Runaways  "  is  a 
complete  story  in  itself,  but  forms  the  ninth 
volume  of  a  line  issued  under  the  general  title  of 
"  Dave  Porter  Series." 

In  the  first  volume  of  this  series,  entitled 
"  Dave  Porter  at  Oak  Hall,"  the  reader  was  in- 
troduced to  a  typical  American  lad,  and  the  par- 
ticulars were  given  of  his  doings  at  an  up-to-date 
boarding  school. 

There  was  a  cloud  over  Dave's  parentage,  and 
in  order  to  solve  the  mystery  of  his  identity  he 
took  a  long  voyage  over  the  ocean,  as  related  in 
the  second  volume,  called  "  Dave  Porter  in  the 
South  Seas."  Then  he  came  back  to  his  school- 
mates, as  told  of  in  "  Dave  Porter's  Return  to 
School,"  and  then  took  a  long  trip  to  Norway,  to 
hunt  up  his  father,  the  particulars  of  which  are 
given  in  "  Dave  Porter  in  the  Far  North." 

Having  settled  the  matter  of  his  identity  to  his 
satisfaction,  our  hero  came  back  to  Oak  Hall  and 
had  a  number  of  strenuous  contests,  related  in 
detail  in  "  Dave  Porter  and  His  Classmates." 
Following  this  came  the  summer  vacation,   and 


iv  PREFACE 

the  youth  made  a  trip  West,  the  happenings  of 
which  are  set  down  in  "  Dave  Porter  at  Star 
Ranch." 

When  Dave  returned  to  Oak  Hall  once  more 
he  found  the  school  rivalries  as  bitter  as  ever,  and 
what  these  led  to  has  been  related  in  "  Dave 
Porter  and  His  Rivals."  His  enemies  tried  hard 
to  do  our  hero  much  injury,  but  he  exposed  them 
and  they  were  forced  to  flee,  to  escape  the  conse- 
quences of  their  actions. 

The  winter  holidays  found  Dave  homeward 
bound.  He  had  anticipated  some  jolly  times 
among  his  relatives  and  friends,  but  a  robbery 
upset  all  his  plans,  and,  almost  before  he  knew 
it,  he  found  himself  bound  southward,  as  related 
in  "  Dave  Porter  on  Cave  Island."  On  the 
island  he  had  many  adventures  out  of  the  ordi- 
nary, and  he  came  home  more  of  a  hero  than 
ever,  having  saved  Mr.  Wadsworth,  his  bene- 
factor, from  ruin. 

In  the  present  story  Dave  is  back  once  again 
at  school.  There  are  some  queer  happenings, 
and  then  some  lads  run  away.  How  Dave 
proved  his  common  sense,  and  brought  the  run- 
aways back,  I  leave  for  the  pages  which  follow 
to  tell.  I  trust  the  reading  of  this  volume  will 
do  all  my  young  friends  good. 

Edward  Stratemeyer. 

February  i,   19 13. 


CONTENTS 


I.  Dave  and  His  Chums  . 

II.  A  Glimpse  at  the  Past 

III.  A  Talk  of  the  Future 

IV.  Mr.  Job  Haskers's  Doings  . 
V.  At  Oak  Hall  OncE  More 

VI.  Phil  Shows  His  Stubbornness 

VII.  Phil  and  Ben  Make  a  Move 

VIII.  An  Unusual  Compact 

IX.  The  King  of  Sumatra 

X.  Nat  Poole  Wants  to  Know 

XI.  Bonfire  Night  at  the  Hall 

XII.  Plans  for  a  Spread     . 

XIII.  The  Cabin  on  the  Island   . 

XIV.  The  Bandanna  Handkerchief 
XV.  At  the  Hotel 

XVI.  The  Blowing  up  of  the  Bridge 

XVII.  A  Serious  Accusation 

XVIII.  The  Meeting  on  the  Road 

XIX.  Looking  for  the  Runaways 

XX.  The  Wild  Man  Again 

XXI.  Something  of  a  Clew 

XXII.  After  the  Runaways 

XXIII.  At  the  Camp 

XXIV.  Out  in  the  Storm 
XXV.  Perils  of  the  Flood  . 

v 


PAGE 

i 
ii 

21 

31 

41 

52 

62 

72 

82 

92 

102 

112 

122 

132 

142 

152 

162 

172 

182 

ig2 

202 

212 

222 

232 

24I 


VI 


CONTENTS 


CHAPTER 

XXVI. 

XXVII. 

XXVIII. 

XXIX. 

XXX. 


Back  to  the  School 

The  Trail  Through  the  Woods 

The  Capture  of  the  Wild  Man 


page 
251 
261 
270 


A  Bit  of  Evidence 280 

The  Exposure — Good-by  to  Oak  Hall        .     290 


ILLUSTRATIONS 

He  saw  an  arm  and  a  head  come  up  (Page  240)     Frontispiece 

FACING 
PAGE 

The  left  mud-guards  scraped  the  buggy         ...  22 

"Stop!"  cried  Dave 86 

"Where?  where?"  yelled  Horsehair         ....  108 

Boom!  came  the  dull,  heavy  roar 158 

"There  is  the  motor-boat  now!" 186 

An  instant  later  the  wild  man   was  jerked  over  back- 
wards       270 

"Help  me!   Save  me!"  spluttered  the  terror-stricken 

teacher 286 


DAVE   PORTER  AND   THE 
RUNAWAYS 

CHAPTER  I 

DAVE   AND    HIS    CHUMS 

"  I  SAY,  Dave,  here's  an  odd  piece  of  news." 

"An  odd  piece  of  news,  Roger?  What 
about?" 

"  A  wild  man  in  the  woods  back  of  Oak  Hall," 
answered  Roger  Morr,  who  held  a  letter  in  his 
hand.     "  Queerest  thing  you  ever  heard  of." 

"  I  should  say  it  was,  if  it's  about  a  wild  man," 
returned  Dave  Porter.     "  Who  sent  that  letter?  " 

"  Shadow  Hamilton." 

"  Maybe  it's  another  one  of  Shadow's  innumer- 
able yarns,"  suggested  Dave,  with  a  faint  smile. 
"  If  he  can't  tell  them  by  word  of  mouth,  he  writes 
them  down." 

"  What  has  Shadow  got  to  say  about  the  wild 
man?"  asked  Phil  Lawrence,  looking  up  from 
the  suit-case  he  was  packing.  "  Has  he  been  try- 
ing to  clean  out  Oak  Hall,  or  anything  like  that?  " 


2   DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

"  No,  not  exactly,"  returned  Roger,  turning 
back  to  the  letter,  which  he  had  not  yet  finished. 
"  He  keeps  in  the  woods,  so  Shadow  says,  and 
scares  everybody  who  comes  that  way." 

"  How  does  he  scare  them?  "  asked  Dave,  paus- 
ing in  the  act  of  stowing  a  suit  of  clothing  in  a 
trunk. 

"  Shadow  writes  that  he  and  Lazy  were  out 
walking  one  day  and  the  wild  man  came  after 
them  with  a  big  club.  He  wears  long  hair  and 
a  long  beard,  and  his  clothes  are  in  tatters." 

"  What  did  they  do?  "  questioned  Phil. 

"  They  ran  back  towards  the  school.  The  wild 
man  followed  'em  as  far  as  the  bridge  over  the 
brook,  and  then  jumped  into  the  bushes  and  dis- 
appeared." 

"  Humph !  "  muttered  Phil.     "  Is  that  all?  " 

"  Oh,  no !  The  day  before  that,  Chip  Macklin 
and  two  other  of  the  smaller  boys  went  out,  along 
the  river,  and  the  wild  man  came  after  them  and 
shoved  Chip  into  the  water.  He  yelled  to  them 
never  to  come  near  him  again.  The  other  fellows 
ran  away,  and  as  soon  as  Chip  could  get  out  of 
the  water  he  went  after  'em.  Then,  three  days 
later,  Doctor  Clay  sent  out  Mr.  Dale  and  Horse- 
hair, the  driver,  to  look  into  the  matter,  and  the 
wild  man  met  them  at  the  bridge  and  threw  mud 
balls  at  'em.  One  mud  ball  hit  the  teacher  in  the 
arm,  and  one  struck  Horsehair  in  the  nose  and 


DAVE  AND  HIS  CHUMS  3 

made  it  bleed.  Horsehair  was  afraid  to  go  on, 
because  the  wild  man  jumped  around  and  shouted 
so  furiously.  Mr.  Dale  tried  to  catch  him,  but 
he  ran  away." 

"  Poor  chap !  He  must  be  crazy,"  was  Dave's 
comment.  "  He  ought  to  be  taken  care  of  by  the 
authorities." 

"  Yes,  but  they  can't  catch  him,"  continued 
Roger.  "  They  have  tried  half  a  dozen  ways,  but 
he  slips  'em  every  time." 

"  Who  is  he?  "  asked  Dave,  as  he  continued  to 
pack  his  trunk. 

"  Nobody  has  the  least  idea,  so  Shadow 
writes." 

"  Say,  that  will  give  us  something  to  do — when 
we  get  back  to  Oak  Hall !  "  cried  Phil.  "  We'll 
organize  a  posse  to  round  up  the  wild  man!  " 

"  I  think  we'll  have  plenty  of  other  things  to 
do  when  we  get  to  school,  Phil,"  remarked  Dave. 
"  Just  remember  that  we  have  lost  a  lot  of  time 
from  our  lessons,  and  if  we  want  to  make  up 
what  we  have  missed,  and  graduate  from  Oak 
Hall  with  honor,  we've  got  to  buckle  down  and 
study." 

"  Oh,  I  know  that,"  answered  Phil,  and  gave  a 
little  sigh.  "  Just  the  same,  I'm  going  to  have  a 
try  at  the  wild  man — if  he  comes  my  way." 

"  So  am  I,"  cried  Roger.  "  And  Dave  will  try 
with  us;   won't  you,   old  man?"     And   Roger 


4   DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

caught  his  chum  affectionately  by  the  shoulder. 
"  You  are  the  fellow  to  solve  mysteries !  " 

Dave  was  about  to  answer  when  there  came  a 
knock  on  the  bedroom  door.  He  opened  it  to 
find  himself  confronted  by  a  middle-aged  lady, 
who  was  smiling  but  anxious. 

"How  are  you  getting  along,  boys?"  she 
asked. 

"  First-rate,  Mrs.  Wadsworth,"  answered 
Roger.     "  We'll  soon  be  finished  now." 

"Are  the  girls  getting  anxious?"  questioned 
Dave. 

"  Say,  what  do  you  think?  "  burst  out  Phil. 
"  We  are  going  back  to  Oak  Hall  to  capture  a 
wild  man  who " 

"Phil!"  burst  out  both  Dave  and  Roger, 
and  the  other  youth  stopped  short  in  confusion. 

"  A  wild  man?  "  cried  the  lady  of  the  house,  in 
consternation.    "  Oh,  Dave,  I  hope " 

"  Oh,  don't  let  him  worry  you,  Mrs.  Wads- 
worth,"  responded  Dave,  quickly.  "  There  is  a 
wild  man  up  there,  but  I  don't  think  he  will  bother 
us  any,  and  we've  got  too  much  to  do  to  hunt  for 
him."  And  the  lad  gave  his  chum  a  look  that  said 
as  plainly  as  words:  "What  did  you  want  to 
mention  it  for?  " 

"  Oh — I — er — I  was  only  fooling,"  stammered 
Phil.  "  Of  course,  if  there  is  a  wild  man  he  won't 
come  near  us.    Tell  the  girls  we'll  be  ready  in  five 


DAVE  AND  HIS  CHUMS  5 

minutes — at  least  I  will,"  he  added,  and  resumed 
his  packing. 

"  Can  I  do  anything  for  you?  "  asked  the  lady. 

"  You  might  try  to  find  my  striped  cap,"  an- 
swered Dave.     "  I  can't  seem  to  locate  it." 

"  It  is  in  the  library — I  saw  it  a  while  ago, 
Dave." 

"  And  my  baseball  bat — the  new  one  with  the 
black  handle." 

"  That  is  in  the  back  hall,  in  a  corner.  How 
about  your  books?" 

"  I've  got  all  of  them.  Send  Laura  with  the  bat 
and  cap,  will  you,  please?  " 

"Yes;"  and  Mrs.  Wadsworth  hurried  off, 
anxious  to  be  of  all  the  assistance  possible. 

"  Say,  that  was  a  bad  break  for  me,"  murmured 
Phil,  as  the  door  closed,  and  before  Dave  or 
Roger  could  speak.  "  I  didn't  want  to  worry  her, 
Dave.    I'm  sorry  I  mentioned  the  wild  man." 

"  And  the  man  may  be  caught  before  we  get 
back  to  Oak  Hall,"  said  Roger.  He  crossed  the 
room  and  peered  into  a  closet.  "  Has  anybody 
seen  my  baseball  shoes?  " 

"  You  left  those  at  the  Hall,  Roger,"  answered 
Dave. 

"  Did  I?  All  right,  then.  I  came  away  in  such 
a  hurry  I  can't  remember  what  I  took  and  what  I 
didn't." 

"  I  guess  we've  got  about  everything  now," 


6   DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

resumed  Dave,  looking  around  the  bedroom. 
He  glanced  at  his  watch.  "  Ten  minutes  to  twelve. 
We  are  to  have  lunch  at  a  quarter  past,  and  start 
at  one,  sharp." 

"  Provided  the  auto  is  ready,"  interposed  Phil. 

"  It  will  be — trust  my  Uncle  Dunston  for  that." 
answered  Dave.  "  My,  but  isn't  it  jolly  to  think 
we  are  going  back  to  school  in  the  auto  instead  of 
by  train!  " 

"  Yes,  and  to  think  that  the  girls  and  your  uncle 
are  going  with  us!  "  added  Roger. 

"  Dave,  look  out  for  Roger,  he's  got  his  eye  on 
Laura !  "  said  Phil,  slyly. 

"  Oh,  you  give  us  a  rest,  Phil  Lawrence !  " 
burst  out  Roger,  growing  red.  "  I  guess  you've 
got  an  eye  on  her  yourself." 

"  Poor  me!  Poor  me!  "  murmured  Phil,  as  if 
talking  to  himself.  "  Roger  will  talk  to  nobody 
but  Laura,  and  Dave  will  see  and  hear  and  think 
of  nobody  but  Jessie,  and  I'll  be  left  in  the  cold! 
Oh,  what  a  cruel  world  this  is!  If  only — wow!  " 
and  Phil's  pretended  musings  came  to  a  sudden 
end,  as  Dave  shied  a  pair  of  rolled-up  socks  at 
him  and  Roger  followed  with  a  pillow.  In  an- 
other instant  a  mimic  battle  was  on,  with  pillows 
and  various  articles  of  clothing  for  ammunition. 
Then  came  another  knock  on  the  door  and  Laura 
Porter  appeared,  with  a  baseball  bat  in  one  hand 
and  her  brother's  cap  in  the  other. 


DAVE  AND  HIS  CHUMS  7 

"Oh  dear  me!"  she  cried,  and  then  stopped 
short,  for  a  red  sweater,  thrown  by  Roger  at  Phil, 
had  missed  its  aim  and  landed  on  her  head. 

"I  beg  your  pardon,  Laura,  really  I  do!" 
gasped  Roger,  as  he  sprang  forward  and  took 
the  sweater  from  its  resting-place.  "  I — I  didn't 
mean  that  for  you." 

"  Oh,  Roger,  of  course  you  did!  "  cried  Phil, 
with  a  twinkle  in  his  eye.  "  That's  the  way  he 
salutes  girls  always,  Laura." 

"Is  this  the  way  you  are  packing  up?"  de- 
manded Dave's  sister,  with  a  little  smile,  while 
poor  Roger  grew  redder  than  ever. 

"  Oh,  we  were  only  waiting  for  you  to  bring 
my  things,  Laura,"  answered  her  brother,  coolly. 
"  We'll  be  ready  in  three  minutes  and  a  half  by 
the  factory  whistles." 

"  Say,  what  is  this  I  hear  about  a  wild  man?  " 
continued  Laura,  as  she  sat  down  on  a  chair 
Roger  shoved  towards  her.  "  You've  made  Mrs. 
Wadsworth  and  Jessie  all  excited  over  it." 

"  Oh,  it  isn't  anything,"  burst  out  Phil,  quickly. 
"  I  made  a  mistake  even  to  mention  it." 

"  She  came  down  and  told  Jessie  and  me  that 
she  was  afraid  you'd  have  more  trouble,  when  you 
got  back  to  school.  As  if  you  haven't  had  trou- 
bles enough  already!  "  And  Laura  looked  affec- 
tionately at  her  brother,  and  then  at  his  chums. 

"  Oh,  this  won't  amount  to  anything,  Laura," 


8   DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

said  Dave.  "  So  tell  Mrs.  Wadsworth  and  Jessie 
not  to  worry  about  it." 

"  But  I  want  to  know  what  it  means?  "  de- 
manded the  sister;  and  in  the  end  Dave  and  his 
chums  had  to  relate  what  they  knew  about  the 
wild  man.  As  they  finished  the  girl  shook  her 
head  doubtfully. 

"  I  don't  like  that  a  bit,"  she  said.  "  I  am  sure 
you'll  get  mixed  up  with  that  wild  man  some- 
how. Why,  he  might  attack  you  and  try  to  kill 
you !  " 

"  We'll  be  on  our  guard — when  we  go  near  the 
woods,"  answered  Roger. 

"  You  had  better  not  go  alone,"  insisted  the 
girl. 

"  We  seldom  travel  alone,"  said  her  brother. 
"  Generally  Roger,  Phil,  and  I  are  together,  and 
very  often  some  of  the  other  fellows  are  with  us. 
But  don't  you  worry,  Laura,  and  tell  Jessie  and 
her  mother  it  will  be  all  right." 

"  And  there  is  another  thing  to  be  careful 
about,  Dave,"  went  on  Laura,  as  she  prepared  to 
leave. 

"What  is  that?" 

"  Be  careful  of  how  you  treat  Nat  Poole." 

"Why,  what  do  you  mean?  "  cried  Dave,  and 
then  he  added  quickly,  as  he  saw  that  his  sister 
had  something  on  her  mind:  "What  has  hap- 
pened now?  " 


DAVE  AND  HIS  CHUMS  9 

"  I  don't  know  exactly,  Dave.  But  I  got  word 
through  Ben  Basswood's  cousin  that  Nat  had 
told  Ben  he  wasn't  going  to  let  you  ride  over 
him  this  term.  I  think  Nat  is  jealous  because 
you  were  so  successful  in  that  trip  to  Cave 
Island." 

"  Did  you  learn  of  anything  Nat  intended  to 
do?  "  questioned  Roger,  curiously. 

"  No,  excepting  that  he  said  he  wasn't  going 
to  play  second  fiddle  to  your  crowd  any  longer. 
He  tried  to  get  into  a  quarrel  with  Ben,  but  Ben 
would  have  nothing  to  do  with  him." 

"  Did  Nat  go  back  to  the  Hall  when  it 
opened?  "  asked  Phil. 

"  Yes,  the  same  day  Ben  went  back." 

"  I  am  not  afraid  of  Nat  Poole,"  declared 
Dave,  stoutly.  "  He  is  a  bully,  always  was,  and 
I  suppose  he  always  will  be.  I  tried  to  do  him  a 
favor  the  last  time  I  saw  him — but  he  doesn't 
seem  to  have  appreciated  it." 

"Laura!"  called  a  musical  voice,  from  the 
stair  landing. 

"  Coming,  Jessie  !  "  answered  Laura.  "  Now 
you  boys,  hurry — lunch  will  be  served  in  a  few 
minutes;"  and  she  left  the  room. 

"  So  Nat  Poole  wants  to  make  more  trouble, 
eh?"  mused  Dave,  as  he  resumed  packing. 
"  What  a  chap  he  is  !  Why  can't  he  be  decent  and 
mind  his  own  business?  " 


io      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

"  Because  he  isn't  that  breed,  that's  why,"  an- 
swered Phil.  "  He  hates  to  see  another  fellow 
become  popular.  Dave,  you  take  my  advice  and 
watch  him,  when  we  get  back  to  school." 

"  I'll  do  it,"  answered  Dave,  thoughtfully. 


CHAPTER  II 

A  GLIMPSE  AT  THE  PAST 

"Everything  ready?" 

"  Yes,  so  far  as  I  know." 

"Then  we  are  off!     Good-by,  everybody!" 

"  Good-by!    Take  care  of  yourself,  Dave!  " 

"I  will!" 

There  was  a  tooting  of  an  automobile  horn,  a 
chorus  of  cries  and  cheers,  a  waving  of  caps,  and 
then  the  big  touring  car  that  had  been  drawn  up 
in  front  of  the  Wadsworth  mansion  rolled  from 
the  piazza  steps  through  the  spacious  grounds; 
and  Dave  Porter  and  his  chums  were  once  more 
on  their  way  to  boarding  school. 

To  those  who  have  read  the  previous  volumes 
of  this  line  of  stories  Dave  Porter  will  need  no 
special  introduction.  For  the  benefit  of  new  read- 
ers allow  me  to  state  that  Dave  was  a  wideawake 
American  lad,  now  well  along  in  his  school  years. 

When  a  small  child  our  hero  had  been  found 
one  day,  walking  along  the  railroad  tracks  near 
the  town  of  Crumville.  He  could  tell  nothing 
about  himself,  and  as  nobody  came  to  claim  him, 


12      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

he  was  taken  to  the  local  poorhouse,  where  he 
remained  a  number  of  years.  Then  he  was  bound 
out  to  a  broken-down  college  professor  named 
Caspar  Potts,  who  was  farming  for  his  health. 
The  professor  did  what  he  could  for  the  lad,  but 
soon  got  into  difficulties  with  a  mean  money-lender 
named  Aaron  Poole,  and  would  have  lost  his  farm 
had  it  not  been  for  something  out  of  the  ordinary 
happening. 

On  the  outskirts  of  the  town  lived  a  wealthy 
jewelry  manufacturer,  Oliver  Wadsworth.  Mr. 
Wadsworth  had  a  daughter  named  Jessie,  and 
one  day,  through  an  explosion  of  an  automobile 
tank,  the  little  miss  was  in  danger  of  being  burned 
to  death,  when  Dave  came  to  her  assistance.  This 
so  pleased  the  Wadsworths  that  they  came  not 
only  to  the  boy's  aid  but  also  helped  Caspar  Potts. 

"  The  lad  shall  go  to  boarding  school  and  get 
a  good  education,"  said  Oliver  Wadsworth.  And 
how  Dave  was  sent  off  has  already  been  related 
in  the  first  book  of  this  series,  entitled  "  Dave 
Porter  at  Oak  Hall."  At  the  school  he  made 
many  warm  friends,  including  Roger  Morr,  the 
son  of  a  United  States  senator;  Phil  Lawrence, 
the  offspring  of  a  wealthy  shipowner;  Buster 
Beggs,  who  was  fat  as  he  was  jolly,  and  Maurice, 
otherwise  "  Shadow "  Hamilton,  who  would 
rather  spin  yarns  than  eat.  He  also  made  some 
enemies,  not  the  least  of  whom  were  Gus  Plum, 


A  GLIMPSE  AT  THE  PAST  13 

a  great  bully,  and  Nat  Poole,  son  of  the  money- 
lender already  mentioned.  Plum  had  since  re- 
formed, but  Nat  was  as  overbearing  and  dic- 
tatorial as  ever. 

The  great  cloud  resting  over  Dave  in  those  days 
was  the  question  of  his  identity,  and  when  some  of 
his  enemies  spoke  of  him  as  "  that  poorhouse  no- 
body "  he  resolved  to  find  out  who  he  really  was. 
Getting  a  strange  clew,  he  set  forth  on  his  travels, 
as  described  in  "  Dave  Porter  in  the  South  Seas," 
where  he  found  his  uncle,  Dunston  Porter.  Then 
he  came  back  to  Oak  Hall,  as  told  of  in  "  Dave 
Porter's  Return  to  School,"  and  next  went  to  the 
Land  of  the  Midnight  Sun,  as  set  forth  in  "  Dave 
Porter  in  the  Far  North,"  where  he  was  glad- 
dened by  a  long-hoped-for  meeting  with  his  father. 

"  They  can't  say  I'm  a  poorhouse  nobody  now," 
he  told  himself,  and  went  back  to  Oak  Hall  once 
again,  as  set  forth  in  "  Dave  Porter  and  His 
Classmates."  Here  he  made  more  friends  than 
ever,  but  he  likewise  made  enemies,  the  most  bit- 
ter of  the  latter  being  one  Link  Merwell,  the  son 
of  a  ranch-owner  of  the  West.  Merwell  did  his 
best  to  get  Dave  into  trouble,  but  in  the  end  was 
exposed  and  had  to  leave  the  school. 

Vacation  time  was  now  at  hand,  and  through 
Laura  Porter,  our  hero's  newly-found  sister, 
Dave  and  his  chums  were  invited  to  visit  some  of 
Laura's  friends  in  the  Far  West.     Laura  Porter 


14      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

and  Jessie  Wadsworth  went  along;  and  what  a 
grand  time  the  young  folks  had  can  be  realized  by 
reading  "  Dave  Porter  at  Star  Ranch."  The 
boys  went  hunting  and  fishing,  and  learned  to  do 
some  broncho-riding,  and  they  likewise  fell  in 
with  Link  Merwell  again  and  showed  that  bully 
up  in  his  true  colors. 

"  Back  to  the  grind  now!  "  said  Dave,  after  the 
vacation  was  over,  and  back  he  did  go,  to  Oak 
Hall,  as  told  of  in  "  Dave  Porter  and  His  Rivals." 
That  term  was  a  lively  one,  for  some  lads  came 
there  from  another  school,  and  they,  led  by  Nat 
Poole,  tried  to  run  matters  to  suit  themselves. 
But  when  the  newcomers  lost  an  important  foot- 
ball contest,  Oak  Hall  woke  up  to  the  true  condi- 
tion of  affairs,  and  Dave  and  his  chums  quickly 
regained  their  places  on  the  eleven,  and  then  won 
a  grand  victory.  During  this  time  Link  Merwell, 
in  company  with  another  bad  boy  named  Nick 
Jasniff,  became  a  student  at  Rockville  Military 
Academy,  a  rival  institution  of  learning.  Both 
bullies  did  their  best  to  make  trouble  for  our 
hero,  but,  as  before,  he  exposed  them,  and  this 
time  they  had  to  flee  to  escape  arrest. 

When  the  Christmas  holidays  came  around 
Dave  went  back  to  Crumville,  where  he  and  his 
family  and  old  Caspar  Potts  now  lived  with  the 
Wadsworths.  At  that  time  Mr.  Wadsworth  had 
at  his  jewelry  works  some  rare  diamonds,  waiting 


A  GLIMPSE  AT  THE  PAST  15 

to  be  reset.  Directly  after  Christmas  came  a 
startling  robbery.  The  diamonds  were  gone,  and 
it  was  learned  by  Dave  that  if  they  were  not  re- 
covered, not  only  would  Mr.  Wadsworth  be 
ruined,  but  that  his  own  father  and  his  uncle 
would  be  seriously  crippled  financially,  as  they  had 
gone  on  a  bond  for  the  return  of  the  gems. 

At  first,  clews  to  the  robbers  were  scarce,  but 
soon  Dave  made  a  queer  discovery,  and  followed 
this  up  by  another,  as  set  forth  in  the  volume  pre- 
ceding this,  entitled,  "  Dave  Porter  on  Cave 
Island."  He  and  his  chums  became  satisfied  that 
Link  Merwell  and  Nick  Jasniff  had  committed 
the  theft,  and  they  followed  the  evil  pair,  first  to 
Florida  and  then  to  Cave  Island,  so  named  be- 
cause of  the  numerous  caverns  it  contained.  The 
evil-doers  were  caught  and  the  diamonds  recov- 
ered, but,  at  the  last  moment,  Link  Merwell  man- 
aged to  escape. 

"  Let  him  go,"  said  Dave.  "  He  acts  as  if  he 
wanted  to  turn  over  a  new  leaf." 

"  I  am  glad  it  wasn't  Jasniff,"  returned  Phil. 
"  He  is  the  worse  of  the  pair." 

"  Right  you  are,"  agreed  Roger. 

The  senator's  son  and  Phil  had  accompanied 
Dave  to  Crumville,  and  all  had  received  a  warm 
reception  at  the  hands  of  those  who  were  waiting 
for  them.  Mr.  Wadsworth  was  delighted  to  get 
back  the  jewels,  and  thanked  Dave  over  and  over 


1 6   DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

again  for  what  he  had  done.  Dave's  father  and 
his  uncle  were  also  happy,  and  as  for  Laura,  she 
had  to  hug  her  brother  over  and  over  again.  Jes- 
sie wanted  to  hug  him,  too,  but  her  maidenly 
modesty  prevented  this,  but  she  gave  Dave  a  look 
and  a  hand  squeeze  that  meant  a  good  deal,  for 
our  hero  was  her  hero,  too,  and  always  had  been. 

The  boys  knew  they  had  to  go  back  to  Oak 
Hall,  but  the  older  folks  had  insisted  that  they 
rest  up  a  bit,  after  their  traveling.  So  they 
"  rested  "  by  going  skating  and  sleigh-riding  for 
the  last  time  that  season,  taking  the  girls  along. 

"  I've  got  an  idea,"  said  Dave's  uncle,  one 
morning,  after  the  snow  had  cleared  away.  "  The 
roads  are  so  fine  just  now,  what  is  to  prevent  my 
taking  you  to  Oak  Hall  in  the  touring  car?  We 
can  make  it  in  a  day,  I  think." 

"Grand!  "  shouted  Dave. 

"  Just  the  thing!"  added  Phil. 

"  Couldn't  be  better,"  supplemented  Roger. 

"  You  can  ship  your  baggage  on  by  express," 
went  on  Dunston  Porter,  "  and  then  we'll  have 
room  enough  to  take  Laura  and  Jessie,  if  they 
want  to  go  along." 

"Fine!"  burst  out  Roger,  so  quickly  that  it 
made  Phil  wink,  and  then  the  senator's  son  grew 
red.     "  Isn't  it  all  right?  "  he  demanded. 

"  Sure  thing,"  responded  the  shipowner's  son. 

The  matter  was  talked  over;  and  that  night  it 


A  GLIMPSE  AT  THE  PAST  17 

was  arranged  that  the  two  girls  should  go  along 
on  the  trip,  returning  later  to  Crumville  with  Mr. 
Porter.  Not  to  tire  Laura  and  Jessie  too  much, 
it  was  decided  to  leave  after  lunch  the  next  day, 
stopping  over  night  at  Ryeport,  and  finishing  the 
trip  to  Oak  Hall  the  morning  following. 

"  If  only  the  good  weather  holds  out,"  said 
Roger,  wistfully.  And  then  he  added  suddenly: 
"  Who  is  going  to  sit  in  front  with  your  uncle, 
Dave?" 

"  Why,  you  are,  of  course,"  broke  in  Phil,  with 
a  grin. 

"  Why — er — I "   stammered   the   senator's 

son. 

"  Now,  Phil,  you  know  you  said  you'd  like  that 
seat,"  broke  in  Dave.  "  He's  only  fooling  you, 
Roger."  And  then  Roger  looked  quite  satisfied, 
for,  it  might  as  well  be  confessed,  Roger  and 
Laura  were  very  friendly  and  liked  greatly  to  be 
in  each  other's  company.  The  senator's  son  had 
a  manly  regard  for  Dave's  sister — the  same  kind 
of  a  feeling  that  our  hero  had  for  dear  little 
Jessie. 

The  trunks  and  suit-cases  had  been  shipped  off, 
and  the  big  six-cylinder  car — a  new  machine  be- 
longing to  the  Porters — had  been  brought  around, 
with  Dunston  Porter  at  the  wheel,  for  the  old 
hunter  and  traveler  had  taken  a  strong  liking  to 
autoing.     The  girls  and  boys  had  piled  in,  after 


1 8   DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

much  handshaking  and  some  kisses,  and  now  the 
car  was  rolling  out  of  the  grounds,  leaving  Mr. 
and  Mrs.  Wadsworth,  Dave's  father,  and  old 
Caspar  Potts  standing  on  the  piazza,  waving  the 
travelers  adieu. 

"  Take  care  of  yourself,  my  boy !  "  shouted  Mr. 
Porter. 

"  I  will,  Dad !  "  called  back  Dave.  "  You  take 
it  easy  till  I  get  back,"  he  added,  for  he  knew  that 
his  parent  had  been  working  hard  of  late. 

"  I  hate  to  see  Dave  go — he  is  so  full  of  life  and 
good  cheer,"  murmured  Mrs.  Wadsworth,  with  a 
sigh. 

"  Best  lad  in  the  world,"  added  her  husband. 

"  Yes,  yes !  The  very  best !  "  came  in  a  quaver- 
ing voice  from  old  Caspar  Potts,  and  the  tears 
stood  in  his  glistening  eyes. 

"  I  trust  he  comes  through  this  year  at  Oak 
Hall  all  right,"  resumed  Mr.  Porter,  as,  the  auto- 
mobile having  disappeared,  those  left  behind  re- 
entered the  house.  "  He  wishes  to  graduate,  you 
know." 

"  Don't  you  think  he'll  come  through?  "  asked 
the  manufacturer,  quickly. 

"  I'm  not  sure  about  it.  He  has  lost  so  much 
time — on  that  trip  he  and  the  others  took — you 
know." 

11  That  is  true." 

"Oh,  Davy  will  come  through,  never  fear!" 


A  GLIMPSE  AT  THE  PAST  19 

cried  Caspar  Potts.  "  I  know  the  lad.  If  he 
makes  up  his  mind — well,  it's  as  good  as  done," 
and  he  nodded  his  whitened  head  several  times. 
To  the  old  college  professor  who  knew  him  so 
well,  there  was  no  youth  quite  so  clever  and  manly 
as  Dave  Porter. 

In  the  meantime  the  big  touring  car  was  leaving 
Crumville  rapidly  behind.  On  the  front  seat,  be- 
side Mr.  Porter,  sat  Phil,  waving  an  Oak  Hall 
banner  and  cracking  all  kinds  of  jokes.  In  the 
back  were  the  two  girls  with  Dave  and  Roger. 
All  were  well  bundled  up,  for  the  air,  though  clear, 
was  still  cold. 

"  Here  is  where  we  make  fifty  miles  an  hour!  " 
cried  the  shipowner's  son,  gayly. 

11  Oh,  Phil!  "  burst  out  Laura.  "  Fifty  miles 
an  hour!     Uncle  Dunston,  don't  you  dare " 

"  Phil  is  fooling,"  interrupted  her  uncle. 

"  That's  it — I  made  a  mistake — we  are  to  go  at 
sixty  miles  an  hour,  just  as  soon  as  we  pass  the 
next  chicken  coop.  We  won't  dare  do  it  before, 
for  fear  of  blowing  the  coop  over.     We " 

"  Why  not  make  it  seventy-five  miles  while  you 
are  at  it,"  broke  in  Dave.  "  Nothing  like  going 
the  limit."    And  at  this  there  was  a  general  laugh. 

"  There  is  a  bad  turn  ahead,"  said  Dunston 
Porter,  a  minute  later.  "  They  have  torn  up  part 
of  the  road  around  the  hill.  We'll  have  to  take  it 
pretty  slowly." 


20      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

The  touring  car  crept  up  the  hill,  past  several 
heaps  of  dirt,  and  then  started  to  come  down  on 
the  other  side.  Here  there  was  a  sharp  curve, 
with  heavy  bushes  on  both  sides.  Mr.  Porter 
blew  the  horn  loud  and  long,  to  warn  anybody 
ahead  that  he  was  coming. 

"  Look  out!  "  yelled  Phil,  suddenly.  But  the 
warning  was  not  necessary,  for  Dunston  Porter 
saw  the  danger  and  so  did  the  others.  A  horse 
and  buggy  were  just  ahead  on  the  torn-up  highway, 
going  in  the  same  direction  as  themselves.  The 
horse  was  prancing  and  rearing  and  the  driver 
was  sawing  at  the  lines  in  an  effort  to  quiet  the 
steed.     It  looked  as  if  there  might  be  a  collision. 


CHAPTER  III 

A  TALK  OF   THE   FUTURE 

The  girls  screamed  and  the  boys  uttered  vari- 
ous cries  and  words  of  advice.  Dave  leaned  for- 
ward, to  jam  on  the  hand-brake,  but  his  uncle 
was  ahead  of  him  in  the  action.  The  foot-brake 
was  already  down,  and  from  the  rear  wheels  came 
a  shrill  squeaking,  as  the  bands  gripped  the  hubs. 
But  the  hill  was  a  steep  one  and  the  big  touring 
car,  well  laden,  continued  to  move  downward, 
although  but  slowly. 

"  Keep  over!  Keep  over  to  the  right!  "  yelled 
Dunston  Porter,  to  the  driver  of  the  buggy.  But 
the  man  was  fully  as  excited  as  his  horse,  and  he 
continued  to  saw  on  the  reins,  until  the  turn- 
out occupied  the  very  center  of  the  narrow  and 
torn-up  highway. 

It  was  a  time  of  peril,  and  a  man  less  used  to 
critical  moments  than  Dunston  Porter  might  have 
lost  his  head  completely.  But  this  old  traveler 
and  hunter,  who  had  faced  grizzly  bears  in  the 
West  and  lions  in  Africa,  managed  to  keep  cool. 
He  saw  a  chance  to  pass  on  the  right  of  the  turn- 

21 


22      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

out  ahead,  and  like  a  flash  he  let  go  on  the  two 
brakes  and  turned  on  a  little  power.  Forward 
bounded  the  big  car,  the  right  wheels  on  the  very 
edge  of  a  water-gully.  The  left  mud-guards 
scraped  the  buggy,  and  the  man  driving  it  uttered 
a  yell  of  fright.  Then  the  touring  car  went  on,  to 
come  to  a  halt  at  the  bottom  of  the  hill,  a  short 
distance  away. 

"  Hello !  "  exclaimed  Dave,  as  he  looked  back 
at  the  turnout  that  had  caused  the  trouble.  "  It's 
Mr.  Poole!" 

"  You  mean  Nat's  father?  "  queried  Phil. 

11  Yes." 

"  Hi,  you  !  What  do  you  mean  by  running  into 
me?"  stormed  the  money-lender,  savagely,  as 
he  presently  managed  to  get  his  steed  under  con- 
trol and  came  down  beside  the  touring  car. 

"  What  do  you  mean  by  blocking  the  road,  Mr. 
Poole?"  returned  Dunston  Porter,  coldly. 

"  I  didn't  block  the  road!  " 

"  You  certainly  did.  If  we  had  run  into  you, 
it  would  have  been  your  fault." 

"  Nonsense !  You  passed  me  on  the  wrong 
side." 

"  Because  you  didn't  give  me  room  to  pass  on 
the  other  side." 

"  And  your  horn  scared  my  horse." 

"  I  don't  see  how  that  is  my  fault.  Your  horse 
ought  to  be  used  to  auto-horns  by  this  time." 


The  left  mud-guards  scraped  the  buggy. — Page  22. 


A  TALK  OF  THE  FUTURE  23 

"  You've  scraped  all  the  paint  off  my  carriage, 
and  I  had  it  painted  only  last  week,"  went  on 
the  money-lender,  warming  up.  "  It's  an  outrage 
how  you  auto  fellows  think  you  own  the  whole 
road!" 

"  I  won't  discuss  the  matter  now,  Mr.  Poole," 
answered  Dunston  Porter,  stiffly.  "  I  think  it  was 
your  fault  entirely.  But  if  you  think  otherwise, 
come  and  see  me  when  I  get  back  from  this  trip, 
which  will  be  in  four  days."  And  without  wait- 
ing for  more  words,  Dave's  uncle  started  up  the 
touring  car,  and  Aaron  Poole  was  soon  left  far 
behind. 

"  If  he  isn't  a  peach!  "  murmured  Roger,  slang- 
ily.  "  It's  easy  to  see  where  Nat  gets  his  mean- 
ness from.    He  is  simply  a  chip  of  the  old  block." 

"  He's  a  pretty  big  chip,"  returned  Phil,  dryly. 

"  I  don't  see  how  he  can  blame  us,"  said  Dave. 
"  We  simply  couldn't  pass  him  on  the  left.  If  we 
had  tried,  we'd  have  gone  in  the  ditch  sure.  And 
the  scraping  we  did  to  his  buggy  amounts  to  next 
to  nothing." 

"  I  am  not  afraid  of  what  he'll  do,"  said  Dun- 
ston Porter.  "  A  couple  of  dollars  will  fix  up 
those  scratches,  and  if  he  is  so  close-fisted  I'll  foot 
the  bill.  But  I'll  give  him  a  piece  of  my  mind  for 
blocking  the  road." 

"  But  his  horse  was  frightened,  Uncle  Dun- 
ston," said  Laura. 


24   DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

"  A  little,  yes,  but  if  Poole  hadn't  got  scared 
himself  he  might  have  drawn  closer  to  the  side  of 
the  road.  I  think  he  was  more  frightened  than 
the  horse." 

"  He  certainly  was,"  declared  Phil.  "  When 
we  scraped  the  buggy  his  face  got  as  white  as 
chalk,  and  he  almost  dropped  the  lines." 

"  He'll  hate  all  of  us  worse  than  ever  for  this," 
was  Dave's  comment. 

"  I  am  not  afraid  of  him,"  answered  the  uncle. 

On  and  on  sped  the  big  touring  car,  and  soon 
the  stirring  incident  on  the  road  was,  for  the  time 
being,  forgotten.  Crumville  had  been  left  far  be- 
hind, and  now  they  passed  through  one  pretty 
village  after  another.  On  the  broad,  level 
stretches  Dunston  Porter  allowed  the  boys  to 
"  spell  "  him  at  the  wheel,  for  each  knew  how  to 
run  an  automobile. 

"  Twenty  miles  more  to  Ryeport !  "  cried  Dave, 
as  they  came  to  a  crossroads  and  read  a  sign- 
board. 

"  And  it's  just  half-past  five,"  added  the  sena- 
tor's son,  consulting  his  watch.  "  We'll  get  there 
in  plenty  of  time  to  wash  up  and  have  a  fine 
dinner." 

"  And,  say,  maybe  we  won't  do  a  thing  to  that 
table !  "  murmured  Phil,  smacking  his  lips. 

"  Oh,  you  boys  are  always  hungry,"  was  Jes- 
sie's comment. 


A  TALK  OF  THE  FUTURE  25 

"  Well,  you  know,  we've  got  to  grow,"  an- 
swered Phil,  with  a  grin. 

"  I  think  I'll  enjoy  eating  after  such  a  long 
ride,"  said  Laura.  "  The  fresh  air  certainly  does 
give  one  an  appetite." 

"  I  think  I'll  order  bread  and  milk  for  all 
hands,"  remarked  Dunston  Porter,  with  a  sly 
smile. 

"  Bread  and  milk!  "  murmured  Jessie,  in  dis- 
may. 

"  Sure.    It's  famous  for  your  complexion." 

"  A  juicy  steak  for  mine !  "  cried  Dave. 
"  Steak,  and  vegetables,  and  salad,  and  pudding  or 
pie." 

"  Well,  I  guess  that  will  do  for  me,  too,"  said 
his  uncle,  simply.  "  You  see,  I  suppose  I'll  have  to 
eat  to  keep  you  company,"  and  he  smiled  again. 

"  Uncle  Dunston,  what  a  tease  you  are!  "  mur- 
mured Laura.  "  Your  appetite  is  just  as  good  as 
that  of  any  of  the  boys." 

Dave  was  at  the  wheel,  and  he  sent  the  touring 
car  along  the  smooth  highway  at  a  speed  of 
twenty  miles  an  hour.  He  would  have  liked  to 
drive  faster,  but  his  uncle  would  not  permit  this. 

"  The  law  says  twenty  miles  an  hour,  and  I  be- 
lieve in  obeying  the  law,"  said  Dunston  Porter. 
"  Besides,  you  can  never  tell  what  may  happen, 
and  it  is  best  to  have  your  car  under  control." 

The  truth  of  the  latter  remark  was  demon- 


26      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

strated  less  than  five  minutes  later,  when  they 
came  to  another  crossroads.  Without  warning  of 
any  kind,  a  racing  car  came  rushing  swiftly  from 
one  direction  and  a  coach  from  the  other.  Dave 
could  not  cross  ahead  of  the  racing  car,  and  the 
approach  of  the  coach  from  the  opposite  direc- 
tion cut  him  off  from  turning  with  the  car.  So 
all  that  was  left  to  do  was  to  jam  on  both  brakes, 
which  he  did,  and  then,  as  the  racing  car  shot  past, 
he  released  the  wheels  and  went  on,  just  ahead 
of  the  coach.  But  it  was  a  narrow  escape  all 
around,  and  the  girls  and  Roger  leaped  to  their 
feet  in  alarm. 

"Phew!  see  them  streak  along!"  was  Phil's 
comment,  gazing  after  the  racing  car,  which  was 
fast  disappearing  in  a  cloud  of  dust. 

"They  ought  to  be  arrested!"  was  Laura's 
comment.  "  Why,  we  might  have  been  smashed 
up!" 

"  Good  work,  Davy !  "  cried  Dunston  Porter. 
"  You  did  just  the  right  thing." 

"  Even  if  that  coach  driver  is  shaking  his  fist 
at  us,  eh?"  answered  Dave,  and  he  bobbed  his 
head  in  the  direction  of  the  coach,  which  had 
hauled  up  but  was  now  going  on. 

"  If  you  had  been  going  a  little  faster  it  would 
have  been  all  up  with  us,"  said  Phil,  with  a  grave 
shake  of  his  head. 

"  Let  me  take  the  wheel  now,"  said  Dunston 


A  TALK  OF  THE  FUTURE  27 

Porter,  quietly,  and  Dave  slid  out  of  the  driving- 
seat  willingly  enough,  for  the  excitement  had  left 
him  somewhat  limp. 

Half-past  six  found  them  in  Ryeport,  and  a 
few  minutes  later  they  rolled  up  to  the  National 
Hotel,  and  the  girls  and  boys  got  out,  while  Mr. 
Porter  took  the  car  around  to  the  garage.  They 
had  sent  word  ahead  for  rooms,  and  all  soon  felt 
at  home.  The  girls  had  a  line  apartment  on  the 
second  floor,  front,  with  Dunston  Porter  next  to 
them,  and  the  three  boys  in  a  big  room  across  the 
hallway. 

When  the  young  people  assembled  in  the  dining- 
room,  after  brushing  and  washing  up,  a  surprise 
awaited  them.  They  had  a  table  to  themselves, 
ordered  by  Dunston  Porter,  and  decorated  with  a 
big  bouquet  of  roses  and  carnations.  A  full  course 
dinner  was  served. 

"  Oh,  this  is  lovely!  "  cried  Jessie,  as  she  caught 
sight  of  the  flowers. 

"  Just  grand,  Uncle  Dunston!  "  added  Laura. 
And  then  she  added,  in  a  lower  voice:  "  If  there 
wasn't  such  a  crowd,  I'd  give  you  a  big  hug  for 
this!" 

"  And  so  would  I,"  added  Jessie. 

"  All  right,  that's  one  you  owe  me,  girls,  re- 
member that,"  answered  the  old  hunter  and 
traveler. 

They  spent  over  an  hour  at  the  table,  enjoying 


28      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

the  bountiful  spread  provided,  and  telling  stories 
and  jokes.  The  boys  were  in  their  element,  and 
kept  the  girls  laughing  almost  constantly. 

"  We'll  be  back  to  the  grind  day  after  to- 
morrow, so  we  had  better  make  the  best  of  it," 
was  the  way  Dave  expressed  himself. 

After  the  meal,  Dunston  Porter  went  out  to 
give  directions  concerning  the  touring  car,  and 
Phil  accompanied  him.  This  left  our  hero  and 
Roger  alone  with  the  two  girls.  They  sought  out 
the  hotel  parlor,  which  they  found  deserted,  and 
Dave  and  Jessie  walked  to  the  far  end,  where 
there  was  an  alcove,  while  Roger  and  Laura  went 
to  the  piano. 

"  Dave,  won't  it  be  hard  work  to  go  back  to  the 
grind,  as  you  call  it?  "  questioned  Jessie,  as  both 
stood  looking  out  of  the  window. 

"  In  a  way,  yes,  but  it's  what  a  fellow  has  got 
to  expect,  Jessie,"  he  returned.  "  A  chap  can't 
get  an  education  without  working  for  it." 

"  I  trust  you  pass  with  high  honors,"  the  girl 
went  on,  with  a  hopeful  look  into  his  face. 

"  I'll  try  my  best.  Of  course,  I've  lost  some 
time — going  to  Cave  Island  and  all  that.  Maybe 
I'll  flunk." 

"  Oh,  Dave,  that  would  be — be "     Jessie 

could  not  go  on. 

"  As  soon  as  I  get  back  I'm  going  to  buckle 
down,  and  get  to  be  a  regular  greasy  grind,  as 


A  TALK  OF  THE  FUTURE  29 

they  call  'em.  I've  made  up  my  mind  to  one 
thing  I'm  afraid  the  others  won't  like." 

"What's  that?" 

"  I'm  going  to  cut  the  baseball  nine,  if  I  can. 
It  takes  too  much  time  from  our  studies." 

"Won't  that  be  easy?  " 

"  I  don't  know.  I  made  quite  a  record,  you 
know.  Maybe  the  crowd  will  insist  on  it  that  I 
play.  Of  course,  I  don't  want  to  see  Oak  Hall 
lose  any  games.  But  I  guess  they'll  have  play- 
ers enough — with  all  the  new  students  coming 
in." 

"  And  if  you  do  graduate,  Dave,  what  then?  " 
asked  Jessie,  after  a  pause.  This  question  had 
been  on  her  mind  a  long  time,  but  she  had  hesi- 
tated about  asking  it. 

"  To  tell  the  honest  truth,  Jessie,  I  don't  know," 
answered  Dave,  very  slowly.  "  I've  thought  and 
thought,  but  I  can't  seem  to  hit  the  right  thing. 
Your  father  and  Professor  Potts  seem  to  think 
I  ought  to  go  to  college,  and  I  rather  incline  that 
way  myself.  But  then  I  think  of  going  to  some 
technical  institution,  and  of  taking  up  civil  engi- 
neering, or  mining,  or  something  like  that.  Uncle 
Dunston  knew  a  young  fellow  who  became  a  civil 
engineer  and  went  to  South  America  and  laid  out 
a  railroad  across  the  Andes  Mountains,  and  he 
knew  another  young  fellow  who  took  up  mining 
and  made  a  big  thing  of  a  mine  in  Montana.    That 


30      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

sort  of  thing  appeals  to  me,  and  it  appeals  to 
Dad,  too." 

"  But  it  would  take  you  so  far  from  home, 
Dave!  "  and  Jessie  caught  hold  of  his  arm  as  she 
spoke,  as  if  afraid  he  was  going  to  leave  that 
minute. 

"  I  know  it,  but — er — but — would  you  care, 
Jessie?  "  he  stammered. 

"  Care?  Of  course,  I'd  care!  "  she  replied,  and 
suddenly  began  to  blush.    "  We'd  all  care." 

"  But  would  you  care  very  much?  "  he  insisted, 
lowering  his  voice.  "  Because,  if  you  would,  I'd 
tell  you  something." 

"  What  would  you  tell  me?  "  she  asked. 

"  The  young  fellow  who  went  to  South  Amer- 
ica as  a  civil  engineer  took  his  wife  with  him." 

"Oh,  Dave!"  and  for  the  moment  Jessie 
turned  her  head  away. 

"  If  I  went  so  far  off,  I'd  want  somebody  with 
me,  Jessie.  A  fellow  would  be  awfully  lonely 
otherwise." 

"  I — I  suppose  that  would  be  so." 

"  If  you  thought  enough  of  a  fellow,  would  you 
go  to  South  America,  or  Montana,  or  Africa  with 
him?  "    And  Dave  looked  Jessie  full  in  the  face. 

"  I'd  go  to  the  end  of  the  world  with  him,"  she 
answered,  with  sudden  boldness. 

Then  Mr.  Porter  and  Phil  came  back,  and  the 
conversation  became  general. 


CHAPTER  IV 

MR.   JOB    HASKERS'S   DOINGS 

"And  now  for  Oak  Hall!" 

It  was  Dave  who  uttered  the  words,  the  next 
morning,  after  a  good  night's  rest  and  an  early 
breakfast.  The  big  touring  car  had  been  brought 
around  by  Dunston  Porter,  and  the  young  folks 
had  climbed  in  and  stowed  away  the  limited  bag- 
gage they  carried.  All  felt  in  excellent  spirits, 
and  Dave  was  particularly  gay.  What  Jessie  had 
said  the  evening  before,  and  the  way  she  had  said 
it,  still  hung  in  his  mind.  She  was  a  splendid  girl, 
and  if  it  was  in  him  to  do  it,  he  was  going  to  make 
himself  worthy  of  her.  He  was  still  young,  so 
he  did  not  dwell  long  over  these  things,  but  his 
regard  for  her  was  entirely  proper,  and  likely  to 
make  him  do  his  best  in  his  endeavors. 

Phil  had  asked  for  permission  to  run  the  car 
for  a  while  and  took  the  wheel  as  soon  as  Rye- 
port  was  left  behind.  The  shipowner's  son  knew 
how  to  handle  an  automobile  almost  as  well  as 
any  of  them,  but  he  had  one  fault,  which  was,  that 
he  did  not  steer  out  of  the  way  of  sharp  stones 

31 


32      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

and  like  things  calculated  to  bring  on  punctures 
and  blow-outs. 

"My,  what  a  glorious  morning!"  exclaimed 
Laura,  as  they  bowled  along  over  the  smooth 
roads. 

"  Couldn't  be  better,"  answered  Roger. 
"Wish  we  were  going  on  all  day!  "  he  added. 

"  So  do  I,"  added  Dave.  They  expected  to 
reach  Oakdale  by  noon,  get  dinner  there,  and 
then  run  up  to  the  school. 

"  Not  too  fast,  Phil,"  warned  Mr.  Porter,  as 
the  shipowner's  son  "  let  her  out  a  bit,"  as  he  ex- 
pressed it.  "  You  don't  know  what  sort  of  a 
road  you've  got  beyond  the  turn." 

"  We'll  soon  be  coming  to  some  roads  we 
know,"  answered  Phil.  "  Those  we  used  to  travel 
on  our  bicycles." 

They  passed  through  several  towns  and  vil- 
lages. Then  they  reached  a  crossroads,  and  here 
some  men  and  a  steam  roller  were  at  work,  and 
the  road  was  closed.  One  of  the  workmen  mo- 
tioned for  them  to  take  the  road  on  the  left. 

"  Must  be  a  road  around,"  said  Dunston  Por- 
ter. "  It  doesn't  look  very  good,  but  you  can  try 
it.    Shall  I  take  the  wheel?  " 

"  Oh,  I  can  run  the  car  easily  enough,"  an- 
swered Phil. 

For  half  a  mile  they  went  on  without  trouble, 
through  a  rolling  country  where  the  scenery  was 


MR.  JOB  HASKERS'S  DOINGS  33 

very  fine.     Then  they  reached  a  point  where  the 
road  was  full  of  loose  stones. 

"Be  careful!  "  cried  Mr.  Porter. 

They  rolled  on,  past  a  pretty  farmhouse  and 
some  barns.  They  were  just  on  the  point  of  mak- 
ing another  turn  when  there  came  a  sudden  bang ! 
from  under  the  car,  and  the  turnout  swayed  to  one 
side  of  the  road.  Phil  threw  out  the  clutch  and 
put  on  the  brakes,  and  they  came  to  a  standstill. 
Then  the  driver  shut  off  the  engine. 

"  What  is  the  matter?  "  queried  Jessie. 

"  A  blow-out,  I  guess,"  answered  Dave. 
"We'll    soon    see." 

Dunston  Porter  and  the  boys  got  down  to  the 
ground  and  made  an  examination.  The  shoe  of 
the  rear  left  wheel  had  been  badly  cut  by  the 
sharp  stones  and  the  inner  tube  had  been  blown  out 
through  the  cut. 

"  We'll  have  to  put  on  one  of  the  other  shoes," 
said  Mr.  Porter.  They  carried  two  with  them, 
besides  half  a  dozen  inner  tubes. 

"All  right,  here  is  where  we  get  to  work!" 
cried  Dave.  "  Somebody  time  us,  please,"  and  he 
started  in  by  getting  off  his  coat  and  cuffs  and  don- 
ning a  working  jumper.  His  uncle  quickly  fol- 
lowed suit,  while  Phil  and  Roger  got  out 
the  lifting-jack  and  some  tools. 

The  girls  stood  watching  the  proceedings  for 
a  while  and  then  strolled  back  towards  the  farm- 


34      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

house.  The  boys  and  Mr.  Porter  became  so  en- 
grossed in  putting  on  a  new  inner  tube  and  a  shoe 
that  they  did  not  notice  their  absence.  The  new 
shoe  fitted  the  rim  of  the  wheel  rather  tightly 
and  they  had  all  they  could  do  to  get  it  into 
place. 

"  Phew!  this  is  work  and  no  mistake!  "  mur- 
mured Roger.  "  I  wonder  why  they  can't  get 
tires  that  won't  blow  out  or  go  down." 

"  Maybe  some  day  they  will  have  them,"  an- 
swered Dunston  Porter. 

"  I  reckon  this  is  all  my  fault,"  put  in  Phil, 
ruefully.  "  I  must  have  gone  over  some  extra 
sharp  stone,  and  it  cut  like  a  knife." 

"  Oh,  such  accidents  are  liable  to  happen  to 
anybody,"  answered  Dave.  He  looked  at  his 
watch.  "  Twenty-five  minutes,  and  we  haven't 
blown  it  up  yet !    No  record  job  this  time." 

"  Thank  fortune  we've  got  a  patent  pump  to  do 
the  pumping  for  us,"  remarked  his  uncle.  Pump- 
ing tires  by  hand  he  found  a  very  disagreeable 
task. 

At  last  the  shoe  and  tube  were  in  place  and 
the  pump  was  set  in  motion.  Dave  watched  the 
gauge,  and  when  it  was  high  enough  he  shut 
off  the  air.  The  tools  were  put  away,  and  they 
were  ready  to  go  on  again. 

"  The  girls  went  back  to  that  farmhouse,"  said 
the  senator's  son,   pointing  to   a   small  cottage. 


MR.  JOB  HASKERS'S  DOINGS  35 

"  Let  us  run  back  and  pick  them  up,  and  wash  our 
hands  at  the  well." 

Once  in  front  of  the  house,  Dunston  Porter, 
who  was  at  the  wheel,  sounded  the  horn.  At  the 
same  time  the  boys  made  for  the  well,  which 
stood  between  the  house  and  one  of  the  barns. 

"  Maybe  the  girls  went  inside,"  remarked  Dave, 
as  he  looked  in  vain  for  them. 

"  Must  be  somewhere  around,"  returned  Phil. 

All  washed  up,  using  soap  and  towels  carried 
in  the  car.  Then  Dave  went  to  the  door  of  the 
farmhouse  and  knocked.  In  answer  to  the  sum- 
mons Laura  appeared. 

"Oh,  Dave,  come  in!"  she  cried.  "I  want 
you  to  meet  the  lady  here." 

Wondering  what  his  sister  wanted,  our  hero 
stepped  into  the  sitting-room,  which  was  small  and 
plainly  but  neatly  furnished.  In  a  rocking-chair 
sat  an  elderly  woman,  pale  and  careworn. 

"  Mrs.  Breen,  this  is  my  brother,"  said  Laura. 
"  And  these  are  his  school  chums,"  she  added, 
nodding  towards  Phil  and  Roger. 

"  How  do  you  do,  boys?  "  said  the  woman,  in  a 
thin,  trembling  voice. 

"  We  just  told  her  we  were  bound  for  Oak 
Hall,"  said  Jessie,  who  was  also  present.  "  And 
she  says  she  knows  somebody  there." 

"  She  knows  Mr.  Job  Haskers,"  finished  Laura. 

"Mr.  Haskers!"  repeated  Dave,  mentioning 


36      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

the  name  of  one  of  the  teachers — a  dictatorial  in- 
dividual nobody  liked,  and  who  was  allowed  to 
keep  his  position  mainly  because  of  his  abilities  as 
an  instructor.  The  chums  had  had  more  than  one 
dispute  with  Job  Haskers,  and  all  wished  that  he 
would  leave  the  school. 

"  Yes,  yes,  I  know  him,"  answered  Mrs,  Breen, 
nodding  her  head  gravely  and  thoughtfully.  "  He 
is  a  great  scholar — a  very  great  scholar,"  and  she 
nodded  again.  She  was  not  well  and  her  mind 
did  not  appear  to  be  overly  bright.  She  lived 
alone  in  the  cottage,  a  neighboring  farmer  taking 
care  of  her  few  acres  of  ground  for  her. 

"  Dave,  come  here,"  whispered  Laura,  and  led 
her  brother  to  a  corner  of  the  room.  "  Mrs. 
Breen  tells  me  that  Mr.  Haskers  owes  her  money 
— that  he  used  to  board  with  her  and  that  he  bor- 
rowed some — and  she  says  he  writes  that  he  can't 
pay  her  because  he  gets  so  little  salary,  and 
that  sometimes  he  has  to  wait  a  long  while  him- 
self." 

"  How  much  is  it?  "  asked  Dave,  with  inter- 
est. He  remembered  how  close-fisted  Job  Has- 
kers had  been  on  more  than  one  occasion. 

11  Nearly  two  hundred  dollars,  so  she  says." 

"  He  ought  to  be  able  to  pay  that,  Laura.  I 
think  he  gets  a  fair  salary — in  fact,  I  am  sure  of 
it — and  I  am  also  pretty  sure  that  Doctor  Clay 
doesn't  keep  him  waiting  for  his  money." 


MR.  JOB  HASKERS'S  DOINGS  37 

"  It  is  too  bad!  She  looks  so  helpless  and  so 
much  in  need,"  murmured  the  girl. 

11  I'll  find  out  about  this,"  answered  Dave. 

He  sat  down,  as  did  the  others,  and  soon  had 
the  elderly  lady  telling  her  story  in  detail.  It  was 
not  very  long.  Job  Haskers  had  boarded  with 
her  one  summer,  just  before  obtaining  his  posi- 
tion at  Oak  Hall,  and  he  owed  her  sixty  dollars 
for  this.  During  the  time  he  had  spent  with  her 
he  had  spoken  of  a  school-book  he  was  going  to 
publish  that  would  bring  him  in  much  money,  and 
she  had  loaned  him  a  hundred  and  twenty-five 
dollars  for  this.  But  she  had  never  seen  the 
school-book,  nor  had  he  ever  paid  back  a  cent. 
His  plea,  when  she  had  written  to  him,  had  been 
that  his  pay  was  poor  and  that  he  had  to  wait 
a  long  time  to  get  money,  and  that  his  pub- 
lishers had  not  yet  gotten  around  to  selling  his 
book. 

"  I  never  heard  of  any  book  he  got  out,"  said 
Roger.  "  And  I  think  I  would  hear  if  there  was 
such  a  book." 

"That's  so,"  added  Phil.  "Old  Haskers 
would  be  so  proud  of  it  he  would  want  everybody 
to  know." 

"  It  is  certainly  a  shame  he  doesn't  pay  this  lady, 
if  he  has  the  money,"  was  Dunston  Porter's  com- 
ment. "  Did  he  give  you  a  note?  "  he  asked  of 
Mrs.  Breen. 


38      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

"  He  wrote  out  some  kind  of  a  paper  and  was 
going  to  give  it  to  me.    But  I  never  got  it." 

"He's  a  swindler,  that's  what  he  is!"  mur- 
mured Phil,  wrathfully. 

"  It  looks  that  way,"  answered  Dave,  in  an 
equally  low  tone. 

"  He  knows  this  lady  is  next  to  helpless  and  he 
intends  to  do  her  out  of  the  money!  " 

"  He  ought  to  be  sued,"  exclaimed  Roger. 

"  You  have  no  note,  or  other  writing  about 
the  money?  "  questioned  Mr.  Porter. 

"  I  have  his  letters,"  answered  the  elderly  lady. 
"  They  are  in  the  bureau  yonder."  And  she 
pointed  to  an  ancient  chest  of  drawers. 

"  Shall  I  get  them?  "  asked  Jessie,  for  she  saw 
that  it  was  a  task  for  the  old  lady  to  move  around. 

"  If  you  will,  my  dear.  I  am  so  stiff  it  is  hard 
to  get  up." 

Both  girls  went  to  the  chest  of  drawers  and 
brought  out  a  small  box  of  letters.  Mrs.  Breen 
put  on  her  glasses  and  fumbled  them  over  and 
brought  forth  three  communications  which  were, 
as  the  boys  recognized,  in  Job  Haskers's  well- 
known  jerky  handwriting.  She  passed  them  over 
to  be  read,  and  all  present  perused  them  with 
interest. 

The  contents,  however,  were  disappointing, 
especially  to  the  boys  and  Dunston  Porter,  who 
had  hoped  to  find  something  by  which  legally  to 


MR.  JOB  HASKERS'S  DOINGS  39 

hold  the  school-teacher.  Not  once  did  Job  Has- 
kers  mention  that  he  owed  Mrs.  Breen  any  money. 
He  simply  stated  that  he  regretted  he  could  do 
nothing  for  her,  that  times  were  hard,  and  that 
his  income  was  limited  and  hard  to  get.  He  said 
as  little  as  possible,  and  the  tone  of  the  communi- 
cations showed  that  he  hoped  he  would  hear  no 
more  from  the  old  lady  who  had  done  what  she 
could  to  aid  him. 

"  I  think  this  is  the  limit!  "  said  Dave  to  his 
uncle.     "  Don't  you  think  he  ought  to  be  sued?  " 

"  I  don't  know  about  suing  him,  Dave;  but  I 
think  this  ought  to  be  put  in  a  lawyer's  hands." 

"  He  makes  money  enough  to  pay  this  lady," 
said  Phil.  "  Say,  I've  a  good  mind  to  give  him 
a  piece  of  my  mind !  "  he  added,  hotly. 

"  I'll  look  into  this  when  I  come  back  this  way," 
said  Dunston  Porter,  after  a  little  more  talk. 
"  Perhaps  I  can  get  one  of  our  lawyers  to  prod 
this  Haskers  a  little,  and  also  state  the  case  to 
Doctor  Clay." 

"  Oh,  will  you  do  that,  Uncle  Dunston?  "  cried 
Laura,  brightening,  for  she,  as  well  as  all  of  the 
others,  felt  sorry  for  Mrs.  Breen,  who  seemed  so 
poor,  old,  and  lonesome. 

"  Yes,  I'll  do  it.  And  now  we  had  better  be 
on  our  way, — if  we  want  to  reach  Oakdale  by 
noon,"  went  on  Mr.  Porter. 

The  boys  went  out,  followed  by  Jessie.    Laura 


40   DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

lingered,  to  whisper  something  in  her  uncle's  ear. 
Dunston  Porter  nodded,  and  then  Laura  joined 
the  others. 

"  Mrs.  Breen,  I  will  be  back  in  a  day  or  two, 
to  see  you  about  this  money  affair,"  said  Mr. 
Porter,  when  he  and  the  old  lady  were  alone. 
"  In  the  meantime,  as  you  were  so  kind  as  to  take 
the  young  ladies  in  while  we  were  mending  our 
machine,  allow  me  to  make  you  a  little  present," 
and  as  he  finished  he  placed  a  five-dollar  bill  in 
her  lap. 

"Oh!"  she  cried,  taking  up  the  banknote. 
"  Why,  it's  five  dollars !  I — I  can't  really  take  all 
that  money!  " 

"  Oh,  yes,  you  can,"  said  Mr.  Porter,  smiling. 
"  Use  it  as  you  see  fit,  and  remember  that  I'll  be 
back,  and  we'll  do  what  we  can  to  get  that  money 
from  Mr.  Haskers." 

"  You  are  very,  very  kind !  "  murmured  the  old 
lady,  and  tears  stood  in  her  eyes.  The  past  winter 
had  been  a  severe  one  for  her,  and  she  had  had  a 
hard  struggle  to  get  along. 

"  Good-by!  "  shouted  the  girls  and  boys  to  her, 
and  she  waved  her  hand  to  them.  Then  the 
automobile  started  off  once  more,  in  the  direction 
of  Oakdale. 


CHAPTER  V 

AT  OAK  HALL  ONCE  MORE 

"Hurrah!  here  we  are  at  Oakdale  at 
last!" 

"  Old  town  looks  natural,  doesn't  it?  " 

"  So  it  does,  Roger.    See  any  of  the  fellows?  " 

"  Not  yet,  Dave.  But  we  are  sure  to  meet 
somebody,  even  if  it  is  a  school-day,"  went  on  the 
senator's  son. 

"  Uncle  Dunston,  let  me  take  the  auto  around 
to  the  hotel,"  said  our  hero.  "  I  know  the  streets 
better  than  you  do.  We  have  to  make  several 
turns." 

"  All  right,  Dave,"  was  the  ready  answer,  and 
Dunston  Porter  arose  and  allowed  his  nephew 
to  crowd  into  the  driver's  seat. 

The  run  to  the  town  in  the  vicinity  of  which 
Oak  Hall  was  located  had  been  made  without 
further  incident.  On  the  way  the  party  had  talked 
over  Mrs.  Breen's  affairs,  and  Dunston  Porter 
had  promised  to  take  the  matter  up,  through  his 
lawyer. 

"  I  think  it  best  that  our  names  don't  appear 
41 


42      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

in  the  case,"  said  he.  "  Otherwise,  Mr.  Haskers 
might  not  treat  you  so  well  during  the  term." 

"  He  never  treats  us  well,  anyway,"  grumbled 
Phil.  "  But  you  are  right,  don't  mention  our 
names." 

On  this  late  winter  day  the  town  looked  rather 
dreary,  but  the  young  folks  were  in  high  spirits, 
and  Dave,  with  a  grand  flourish,  ran  the  car  up 
to  one  of  the  best  hotels  the  place  afforded.  As 
before,  word  had  been  sent  ahead  that  they  were 
coming,  and  the  host  of  the  resort  came  out  to 
meet  them. 

"  We'll  have  dinner  ready  inside  of  quarter  of 
an  hour,"  he  said.  "  Come  in  and  make  your- 
selves at  home." 

The  repast  was  fully  as  good  as  the  dinner 
served  at  Ryeport,  and  everybody  enjoyed  it 
greatly. 

"  And  now  for  the  Hall !  "  cried  Dave. 

"Glad  to  leave  us?"  asked  Jessie,  half- 
reproachfully. 

"  You  know  better  than  to  ask  such  a  ques- 
tion," he  replied.  "  But  if  we  have  got  to  get 
back  to  the  grind,  why,  we  might  as  well  do  it." 

"  And  I'm  a  bit  anxious  to  see  how  the  old 
place  looks,"  added  the  senator's  son. 

"  Dave,  you  can  run  the  car  to  the  Hall,  if 
you  wish,"  said  Mr.  Porter,  feeling  sure  the  youth 
would  like  to  do  that  very  thing. 


AT  OAK  HALL  ONCE  MORE  43 

11  All  right." 

The  touring  automobile  was  brought  around, 
and  they  were  just  getting  in  when  there  came  a 
sudden  hail  from  across  the  way. 

"  Hello,  there,  everybody!  " 

"It's  Dave  Porter,  and  Roger,  and  Phil!" 
said  somebody  else. 

"  Why,  how  are  you,  Shadow !  "  cried  our  hero. 
"And  how  are  you,  Buster?"  he  added,  as 
Maurice  Hamilton  and  Buster  Beggs  came  across 
the  road  to  greet  them. 

"  Fine!  "  puffed  Buster,  who  was  very  fat  and 
jolly.  "  Only  Shadow  has  been  walking  the  feet 
off  of  me!"  And  then  the  stout  youth  shook 
hands  all  around. 

"  Now,  just  to  hear  that !  "  cried  Shadow,  as  he, 
too,  shook  hands.  "  Why,  all  we  did  was  to  walk 
from  the  Hall  to  here." 

"  And  up  one  street  and  down  another  for  half 
an  hour,"  burst  in  Buster. 

"  Say,  that  puts  me  in  mind  of  a  story!  "  cried 
Shadow,  who  was  noted  for  his  yarn-spinning 
weakness.     "  Once  two  men  started  to  walk " 

"  Stow  it!  "  came  from  three  of  the  other  lads 
in  concert. 

"  It's  too  early  yet  to  tell  stories,  Shadow," 
said  Dave,  with  a  smile.  "  You  can  tell  them  to- 
night. Tell  us  now,  is  there  anything  new  at  the 
Hall?" 


44      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

"  There  sure  is." 

"  What?  "  asked  Phil  and  Roger. 

11  The  wild  man." 

"  Oh,  has  he  turned  up  again?  "  asked  the  girls, 
with  interest. 

"  Twice — yesterday  morning  and  this  morn- 
ing," said  Buster. 

"  He  didn't  turn  up  at  all,  Buster,"  interposed 
Shadow.  "  When  you  start  to  tell  a  story,  why 
don't  you  tell  it  straight?  " 

"  Oh,  you  tell  it,"  grumbled  the  fat  boy. 
"  You  have  that  sort  of  thing  down  to  a  science." 

"  There  isn't  very  much  to  tell,"  went  on 
Shadow  Hamilton.  "  He  left  his  mark,  that's 
all." 

"Left  his  mark?"  queried  Dave. 

"  That's  it — wide,  blue  marks.  He  must  have 
about  a  ton  of  blue  chalk." 

"  Say,  Shadow,  you  are  talking  in  riddles," 
burst  out  the  shipowner's  son.  "  Give  it  to  us 
in  plain  United  States,  can't  you?  " 

"  Sure  I  can.  Well,  this  wild  man  visited  the 
school  yesterday  morning  and  this  morning,  be- 
fore anybody  was  up.  The  first  time  he  went  into 
the  big  classroom  and  took  some  books,  and  the 
next  time  he  visited  the  kitchen  and  pantry  and 
took  some  grub — I  beg  the  ladies'  pardon — I 
should  have  said  food — a  ham,  a  chicken,  and 
some  doughnuts." 


AT  OAK  HALL  ONCE  MORE  45 

"And    the    blue    chalk ?"    queried    Mr. 

Porter. 

"  I  was  coming  to  that.  In  the  classroom  he 
left  his  mark — a  big  circle,  with  a  cross  inside, 
in  blue  chalk." 

"  And  how  do  you  know  that  is  the  mark  of 
the  wild  man?  "  asked  Laura. 

"  Oh,  we  found  that  out  some  time  ago,"  an- 
swered Shadow.  "  He  seems  to  have  a  mania  for 
blue  chalk,  and  even  puts  it  on  his  face  some- 
times, and  he  chalks  down  that  circle  with  the  cross 
wherever  he  goes." 

"  Then,  if  he  does  that,  why  can't  they  trail 
him  down?  "  asked  Dave. 

"  Because  he  is  like  a  flea — when  you  try  to 
put  your  hands  on  him  he  isn't  there,"  answered 
Shadow.  "  And  say,  that  puts  me  in  mind  of  an- 
other story.    Once  three  boys  were " 

"That  will  do,  Shadow!"  cried  Roger. 
"  About  the  wild  man  is  enough  for  the  present." 

"  Have  they  any  idea  who  he  is?  "  asked  Dun- 
ston  Porter. 

"  Not  the  slightest,"  answered  Buster.  "  And 
they  don't  know  where  he  keeps  himself,  although 
it  must  be  in  the  woods  near  the  school." 

"  Oh,  Dave,  I  hope  he  doesn't  harm  anybody!  " 
cried  Jessie,  with  a  shiver. 

"  Are  you  boys  ready  to  go  back  to  the  Hall?  " 
asked  Dunston  Porter. 


46   DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

"  I  am,"  responded  Buster,  readily. 

"  So  am  I,"  added  the  story-teller  of  the 
school. 

"  Then  we'll  take  you  along,  provided  you 
don't  mind  being  crowded." 

"  We  won't  mind,  if  the  young  ladies  won't,"  re- 
turned the  fat  youth. 

"  Oh,  come  in  by  all  means !  "  cried  Laura. 

"  We'll  make  room  somehow,"  added  Jessie. 

A  minute  later  the  big  car  started  on  the  way 
to  Oak  Hall,  with  Dave  at  the  wheel  and  his 
uncle  beside  him. 

"  Looks  familiar,  doesn't  it?  "  called  out  Roger, 
as  they  spun  along  the  turnpike. 

"  It  certainly  does  !  "  answered  Roger,  and  then 
he  added,  "  What  do  you  say  to  the  old  school 
song?  " 

"  Fine!  "  came  back  the  answer,  and  then  the 
senator's  son  commenced  a  song  they  all  knew  well, 
which  was  sung  to  the  tune  of  "  Auld  Lang  Syne." 
The  girls  knew  the  song,  too,  and  readily  joined 
in. 

"Oak  Hall  we  never  shall  forget, 

No  matter  where  we  roam; 
It  is  the  very  best  of  schools, 

To  us  it's  just  like  home ! 
Then  give  three  cheers,  and  let  them  ring 

Throughout  this  world  so  wide, 
To  let  the  people  know  that  we 

Elect  to  here  abide  ! " 


AT  OAK  HALL  ONCE  MORE     47 

Loud  and  clear  over  the  cool  air  sounded  the 
song,  and  it  was  sung  several  times.  Then,  just 
as  the  car  rolled  into  the  grounds  of  the  school, 
the  boys  gave  one  of  the  Hall  yells,  and  Dave 
honked  the  horn  of  the  automobile  loud  and 
long. 

"  Hello !    It's  the  Porter  crowd !  " 

"Welcome  to  our  city!" 

"How  about  Cave  Island,  Dave!  Did  you 
bring  it  with  you?  " 

"  Heard  you  caught  Jasniff  and  Merwell, 
Roger.     Good  for  you!  " 

"  Say,  Phil,  you're  as  sunburnt  as  if  you'd  been 
to  the  seashore  for  a  summer." 

So  the  talk  ran  on  as  half  a  dozen  students 
flocked  up  to  the  car.  The  afternoon  session  was 
over,  and  despite  the  chilliness  many  lads  were  out 
on  the  campus.  Many  knew  the  girls — having 
met  them  at  some  athletic  games  and  at  a  com- 
mencement— and  those  that  did  not  were  glad  of 
a  chance  for  an  introduction. 

"  I  am  real  glad  to  see  you  back,  boys,"  said 
Doctor  Hasmer  Clay,  the  head  of  the  institution, 
as  he  appeared  and  shook  hands.  "  Glad  to  see 
you,  Mr.  Porter,  and  also  the  young  ladies,"  he 
added.  "  So  you  came  all  the  way  by  auto- 
mobile, eh?  It  must  have  been  a  delightful 
trip." 

"  It  was,"  answered  Dave's  uncle. 


48      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

All  went  inside,  and  the  visitors  were  permitted 
to  accompany  Dave  and  his  chums  to  their  dormi- 
tory. The  boys'  baggage  had  already  arrived,  so 
it  did  not  take  the  lads  long  to  settle  down. 

u  And  now  we'll  have  to  start  back,"  said  Dun- 
ston  Porter,  a  little  later.  "  Dave,  take  good 
care  of  yourself,  and  make  a  good  record." 

"  I'll  do  my  best,  Uncle  Dunston." 

"  And  don't  let  that  wild  man  get  you,"  added 
Jessie,  as  she  took  his  hand  and  allowed  him  to 
hold  her  own,  perhaps  longer  than  was  neces- 
sary. 

"  And  don't  forget  to  write,"  put  in  his  sister. 

"Oh,  I'll  not  forget  that!"  answered  Dave, 
with  a  smile,  both  to  his  sister  and  to  the  girl 
whom  he  regarded  so  warmly. 

It  was  a  trying  moment — this  parting — but  it 
was  soon  over,  and,  with  Dunston  Porter  at  the 
wheel,  and  the  girls  and  boys  waving  their  hands, 
the  touring  car  left  the  Oak  Hall  grounds,  on  its 
return  journey  to  Crumville. 

"  Well,  here  we  are,  as  the  pug  dog  said  to  the 
looking-glass,  when  he  walked  behind  it  to  look 
for  himself,"  remarked  Phil,  dropping  into  a 
chair. 

"  I  suppose  it  will  take  us  a  few  days  to  get 
settled  down,"  answered  Dave,  resting  on  the  top 
of  a  table.  "  I  don't  feel  much  like  unpacking 
yet,  do  you?  " 


AT  OAK  HALL  ONCE  MORE  49 

"  No,  let  us  wait  until  to-night  or  to-morrow," 
returned  Roger,  dropping  on  one  of  the  beds. 
He  was  still  thinking  of  how  clear  and  deep 
Laura's  eyes  had  appeared  when  she  had  said 
good-by  to  him. 

"  I  really  hope  you  will  not  be  homesick,"  said 
a  girlish  voice,  and  Bertram  Vane,  one  of  the 
students,  appeared  from  the  next  room  and  sat 
down  on  a  chair.  "  Homesickness  is  such  an 
awfully  cruel  thing,  don't  you  know." 

"  No  homesickness  here,  Polly,"  answered 
Dave.  "  I  guess  we  are  just  tired  out,  that's  all. 
We've  done  a  lot  of  traveling  since  we  left  Oak 
Hall." 

"  So  I  understand.  Wasn't  it  dreadful  that 
Jasniff  and  Merwell  should  prove  such  villains !  " 
went  on  the  girlish  student.  "  Weren't  you  really 
afraid  to — er — to  touch  them?  " 

"  Not  much!  "  cried  Phil.  "  I  am  only  sorry 
Merwell  got  away." 

"  But  you  got  the  diamonds,  I  heard?  "  put  in 
Sam  Day,  who  was  another  of  the  chums. 

"  We  did." 

At  that  moment  came  musical  sounds  from  an- 
other room  near  by — the  sounds  of  somebody 
strumming  on  a  guitar. 

"  Hello,  there's  Luke  Watson!  "  cried  Roger. 
"  Hi,  come  in  with  that  guitar  and  give  us  a  tune, 
Luke!  "  he  called  out. 


50      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

"  Thought  I  might  cheer  you  up,"  said  Luke, 
appearing.  "  How  would  you  like  me  to  play 
'  The  Girl  I  Left  Behind  Me,'  or  something  like 
that?" 

"Make  it  'Oh,  Those  Eyes  So  Tender!'" 
suggested  Buster. 

"  Or  else  that  beautiful  ditty  called,  '  He 
Loved,  But  Had  to  Leave  Her,' "  suggested 
Shadow.  "  Say,  that  puts  me  in  mind  of  a 
story,"  he  went  on.  "  This  is  true,  too,  though 
you  may  not  believe  it.  A  young  man  went  to 
call  on  his  best  girl  and  took  a  bouquet  of  flowers 
along.  The  bouquet  was  done  up  in  several  thick- 
nesses of  tissue  paper.  Some  of  his  friends 
who  were  jokers  got  hold  of  that  bouquet 
and  fixed  it  up  for  him.  He  gave  it  to  the  girl, 
and  when  she  took  off  the  tissue  paper  what 
do  you  suppose  she  found?  A  bunch  of  celery 
and  some  soup  greens !  He  was  so  fussed 
up  he  didn't  know  what  to  say,  and  he  got  out  in 
a  hurry." 

"  Hurrah  for  the  chaps  who  fixed  up  the 
bouquet!"  cried  Phil.  "But  start  up,  Luke. 
Something  in  which  we  can  all  join." 

"  But  not  too  loud,"  cautioned  Roger.  "  Old 
Haskers  might  not  like " 

"  Oh,  hang  old  Haskers !  "  interrupted  Phil. 
«  He  can't " 

"Sh-sh!"    came    from    Dave,    suddenly,    and 


AT  OAK  HALL  ONCE  MORE     51 

silence  fell  on  the  group  of  boys.  All  turned 
towards  the  doorway  leading  to  the  hall.  There, 
on  the  threshold,  stood  the  instructor  just  men- 
tioned, Mr.  Job  Haskers. 


CHAPTER  VI 

PHIL  SHOWS  HIS  STUBBORNNESS 

Not  one  of  the  boys  knew  how  to  act  or  what 
to  say.  All  wondered  if  Job  Haskers  had  heard 
his  name  mentioned. 

If  the  ill-natured  instructor  had  heard,  he  made 
no  mention  of  it.  He  looked  sharply  about  the 
apartment  and  waved  his  hand  to  Luke. 

"  Watson,  how  many  times  have  I  told  you  that 
you  make  too  much  noise  with  your  musical  in- 
struments? "  he  said,  harshly.  "  You  disturb  the 
students  who  wish  to  study." 

"  I  thought  this  was  the  recreation  hour,  Mr. 
Haskers,"  answered  the  lad,  who  loved  to  play 
the  guitar  and  banjo. 

"  True,  but  I  think  we  get  altogether  too  much 
of  your  music,"  growled  the  instructor.  He 
turned  to  Dave,  Roger,  and  Phil.  "  So  you  are 
back  at  last.  It  is  high  time,  if  you  wish  to  go  on 
with  your  regular  classes." 

"  We  told  Doctor  Clay  that  we  would  make  up 
what  we  have  missed,  Mr.  Haskers,"  answered 
Dave,  in  a  gentle  tone,  for  he  knew  how  easy  it 

52 


PHIL  SHOWS  HIS  STUBBORNNESS       53 

was  to  start  a  quarrel  with  the  man  before  him. 
As  Phil  had  once  said,  Job  Haskers  was  always 
walking  around  "  with  a  chip  on  his  shoulder." 

"  And  how  soon  will  you  make  up  the  lessons 
in  my  class?"  demanded  the  instructor. 

"  I  think  I  can  do  it  inside  of  ten  days  or  two 
weeks." 

"  That  won't  suit  me,  Porter.  You'll  have  to 
do  better.  I'll  give  each  of  you  just  a  week — one 
week,  understand?  If  you  can't  make  the  les- 
sons up  in  that  time  I'll  have  to  drop  you  to  the 
next  lower  class." 

"Oh,  Mr.  Haskers!"  burst  out  Roger.  He 
knew  what  that  meant  only  too  well.  They  would 
not  have  a  chance  to  graduate  that  coming 
June. 

"  I'll  not  argue  the  point,  Morr.  I'll  give  you 
a  week,  starting  to-morrow.  When  you  come  to 
the  classroom  I  will  show  you  just  what  you  have 
to  make  up."  Job  Haskers  looked  around  the 
room.  "  Now,  then,  remember,  I  want  less  noise 
here."  And  so  speaking,  he  turned  on  his  heel  and 
walked  away. 

For  a  moment  there  was  silence,  as  the  boys 
looked  at  each  other  and  listened  to  the  sounds 
of  Mr.  Haskers's  retreating  footsteps.  Then 
Phil  made  a  face  and  punched  one  of  the  bed  pil- 
lows, savagely. 

"  Now,  wouldn't  that  make  a  saint  turn  in  his 


54      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

grave?  "  he  remarked.  "  Isn't  he  the  real,  kind, 
generous  soul! " 

"  He  ought  to  be  ducked  in  the  river!  "  was 
Buster's  comment.  "  Why,  how  can  anybody 
make  up  the  lessons  you've  missed  in  a  week? 
It's  absurd !  Say,  do  you  know  what  I'd  do  if 
I  were  you?    I'd  complain  to  the  doctor." 

"  So  would  I,"  added  Sam  Day.  "  Two  weeks 
would  be  short  enough." 

"  I'll  not  complain  to  the  doctor,"  returned 
Phil.  "  But  I  know  what  I  will  do,"  he  added, 
quickly,  as  though  struck  by  a  sudden  idea. 

"What?"  came  from  several. 

"  Never  mind  what.  But  I'll  wager  he'll  give 
us  more  time." 

"  I  guess  I  know  what  you  think  of  doing,"  said 
Dave.     "  But  take  my  advice  and  don't,  Phil." 

"Humph!  I'll  see  about  it,  Dave.  He  isn't 
going  to  run  such  a  thing  as  this  up  my  back  with- 
out a  kick,"   grumbled  the   shipowner's  son. 

"  Well,  wait  first  and  see  if  he  doesn't  change 
his  mind,  or  if  we  can't  get  through  in  the  week," 
cautioned  Dave. 

"What  was  Phil  going  to  do?"  questioned 
Luke,  strumming  lowly  over  the  strings  of  his 
guitar. 

"  Oh,  don't  let's  talk  about  it,"  cried  Dave,  be- 
fore Roger  could  speak.  He  did  not  wish  the 
Mrs.   Breen   affair   to   become   public  property. 


PHIL  SHOWS  HIS  STUBBORNNESS       55 

"  Tell  us  about  the  wild  man,  and  all  the  other 
things  that  have  happened  here  since  we  went 
away." 

"  And  you  tell  us  all  about  Cave  Island  and 
those  stolen  jewels,"  said  Buster. 

Thereafter  the  conversation  became  general, 
Dave  and  his  chums  telling  of  their  quest  of  the 
Carwith  diamonds,  and  the  other  students  re- 
lating the  particulars  of  a  feast  they  had  had  in 
one  of  the  dormitories,  and  of  various  efforts 
made  to  catch  the  so-called  wild  man. 

"  I  don't  believe  he  is  what  one  would  call  a 
wild  man,"  said  Ben  Basswood,  Dave's  old  chum 
from  home,  who  had  just  come  in  from  some  ex- 
periments in  the  school  laboratory.  "  He  is  sim- 
ple-minded and  very  shy.  He  gets  excited  once 
in  a  while,  like  when  he  threw  those  mud- 
balls." 

"  Well,  you  ought  to  know,"  remarked  Buster. 
"  Ben  is  the  only  fellow  here  who  has  talked  to 
the  man,"  he  explained. 

"  When  was  that,  Ben?  "  questioned  Dave. 

"  That  was  when  the  man  first  appeared,"  an- 
swered the  Crumville  lad.  "  I  didn't  find  out 
until  yesterday  that  he  was  the  wild  man,  and  then 
it  was  because  of  that  blue  chalk  he  uses.  I  met 
him  in  the  woods  when  I  was  out  during  that  last 
snow,  looking  for  rabbits  with  my  shotgun.  I 
came  across  him,  sitting  on  a  rock,  looking  at  an 


56      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

old  newspaper.  He  had  some  of  the  blue  chalk 
in  his  hand  and  had  marked  a  circle  with  a  cross 
on  the  rock.  He  asked  me  where  I  was  going, 
and  told  me  to  look  out  and  not  shoot  a  star,  and 
then  he  asked  me  if  I  used  chalk  for  powder,  and 
said  he  could  supply  a  superior  brand  of  chalk 
cheap.  I  thought  at  first  that  he  was  merely  jok- 
ing, but  I  didn't  like  the  look  in  his  eyes,  and  then 
I  made  up  my  mind  he  was  not  right  in  his  head, 
and  I  left  him.  When  I  came  back  that  way,  an 
hour  later,  he  was  gone,  and  I  have  never  seen 
him  since." 

"  Where  was  this,  Ben?  " 

"  Up  in  the  woods,  where  the  brook  branches  off 
by  the  two  big  rocks." 

"  I  know  the  spot !  "  cried  Roger.  "  Say,  maybe 
he  hangs  out  around  there." 

"  No,  we  hunted  around  there  yesterday,  but 
he  wasn't  to  be  seen.  I  don't  believe  he  has  any 
settled  place  of  abode,  but  just  roams  through  the 
woods." 

"  Poor  fellow!     Somebody  ought  to  catch  him 
and  place  him  in  a  sanitarium,"  was  Dave's  com-' 
ment. 

Various  matters  were  talked  over  until  the 
supper  hour,  and  then  the  boys  filed  down  to  the 
dining-hall.  Here  our  hero  met  more  of  his 
school  chums,  including  Gus  Plum,  who  had  once 
been  his  enemy  but  who  was  now  quite  friendly, 


PHIL  SHOWS  HIS  STUBBORNNESS       57 

and  little  Chip  Macklin,  who  in  days  gone  by  had 
been  Plum's  toady. 

"  Very  glad  to  see  you  back,  Dave !  "  cried  Gus. 
"  And,  say,  you've  certainly  made  a  hero  of  your- 
self," he  added,  warmly. 

"  It  was  great,  what  you  and  Roger  and  Phil 
did,"  added  Chip,  in  deep  admiration. 

Everybody  was  glad  to  see  Dave  back,  and 
after  supper  it  was  all  he  could  do  to  get  away 
from  many  of  his  friends.  But  he  managed  it  at 
last,  and  he,  Roger,  and  Phil  went  upstairs,  to 
put  away  their  things  and  get  out  their  school- 
books. 

"  We  have  got  to  study  and  that  is  all  there 
is  to  it,"  said  Dave,  firmly.  "  Fun  is  one  thing 
and  getting  ready  to  graduate  is  another.  We 
have  got  to  get  down  to  the  grind,  boys." 

"  That's  right,"  answered  the  senator's  son. 

"  But  don't  forget  what  old  Haskers  said," 
grumbled  Phil.  "  He'll  make  us  sweat,  just  you 
wait  and  see!  " 

"  '  Sufficient  for  the  day  is  the  evil  thereof,'  " 
quoted  Dave.  "  I  think  we  can  get  through  if  we 
buckle  down  hard." 

"  Supposing  Mr.  Dale  and  the  other  teachers 
pin  us  down  as  old  Haskers  did?  "  demanded 
Phil. 

"  They  won't  do  it,"  declared  our  hero.  "  Take 
my  word  for  it,  Mr.  Dale  will  give  us  a  month, 


58      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

if  we  want  it.  I  know  him.  And  the  others 
will  do  the  same." 

"  Well,  maybe  we  can  get  through,  if  that's  the 
case,"  said  the  shipowner's  son,  slowly.  "  Just 
the  same,  I  think  old  Haskers  the  meanest  man 
alive." 

The  following  morning,  after  a  good  night's 
rest,  the  boys  went  to  their  various  classes.  As 
Dave  had  predicted,  Mr.  Dale,  the  head  teacher, 
treated  them  with  all  possible  consideration, 
for  he  loved  boys  and  understood  them  thor- 
oughly. The  other  teachers  were  likewise  very 
lenient. 

"  Old  Haskers  is  the  one  stumbling-block," 
said  Roger.  "  Dave,  maybe  we  had  better  see 
Doctor  Clay  about  him." 

"  Not  much !  "  cried  Phil.  "  We've  got  a  club 
we  can  use  on  Haskers.     Why  not  use  it?  " 

"  You  mean,  go  to  him  and  tell  him  we  know 
about  that  Mrs.  Breen  affair,  and  that  we  will 
expose  him  if  he  doesn't  let  up  on  us,  Phil?  "  said 
Dave. 

"  Yes." 

"  Do  you  think  that  is  a — well,  a  gentlemanly 
thing  to  do?  " 

"  It's  what  old  Haskers  would  do,  if  he  was  in 
our  place." 

"  Perhaps.  But  I'd  rather  not  do  it.  Let  my 
uncle's  lawyer  try  to  collect  that  money  without 


PHIL  SHOWS  HIS  STUBBORNNESS       59 

our  appearing  in  the  case.  We  have  had  trouble 
enough  in  the  past  with  Haskers.  Let  us  buckle  in 
and  study  up.  I  am  sure  we  can  get  through," 
added  Dave,  earnestly. 

"All  right,"  growled  Phil;  but  his  manner 
showed  that  he  was  not  satisfied. 

Two  days  went  by,  and  the  boys  settled  down  to 
the  regular  routine  of  the  school.  The  lessons  to 
be  made  up  were  exceedingly  hard,  and  Dave 
found  he  had  to  study  almost  constantly  to  do 
what  was  required  of  him. 

"  But  I  am  going  to  make  it!  "  he  murmured, 
setting  his  teeth  hard.  "  I  am  not  going  to  dis- 
appoint the  folks  at  home." 

One  afternoon  the  three  chums  had  a  very  hard 
lesson  in  Latin  to  do.  It  was  a  clear,  sunshiny 
day  and  they  had  one  of  the  windows  wide  open 
to  let  in  the  fresh  air.  Dave  and  Roger  were 
bending  over  their  books  when  they  heard  a  sud- 
den exclamation  from  Phil. 

"  I'll  be  hanged  if  I'm  going  to  do  it!  " 

And  then  of  a  sudden  a  Latin  book  was  hurled 
across  the  room,  to  land  on  a  bureau,  just  missing 
the  glass. 

"Hello!"  cried  Dave,  raising  his  head. 
"  What's  wrong  now?  " 

"  I'm  not  going  to  do  it!  "  cried  Phil,  stretch- 
ing himself.  "  It's  an  outrage  and  I  won't  sub- 
mit to  it." 


60      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

"You  mean  this  boning  away  for  Haskers?  " 
queried  Roger. 

"  Just  that,"  answered  the  shipowner's  son. 
"  Why  can't  he  treat  us  as  fairly  as  the  other 
teachers  did?  It  wouldn't  hurt  him  a  bit  to  give 
us  more  time." 

"  Phil,  what's  the  use  of  talking  it  over  again?  " 
asked  Dave.  "  I  thought  we  had  settled  it  once 
for  all." 

"  No,  I  won't  stand  it,  I  tell  you,"  cried  Phil, 
stubbornly.    "  He  can't  make  a  pack-mule  of  me." 

"  Well,  then,  speak  to  the  doctor  about  it," 
advised  Roger. 

"  I  don't  have  to  speak  to  the  doctor,"  stormed 
Phil;  and  walking  over  to  a  rack,  he  caught  up  his 
cap  and  marched  from  the  room. 

"  He  is  certainly  in  a  bad  humor,"  was  Dave's 
comment.  "  I  am  afraid  he'll  put  his  foot  into  it, 
Roger." 

"  So  am  I.  He's  been  aching  to  get  back  at  old 
Haskers  ever  since  he  put  all  this  studying  up  to 
us." 

"  Do  you  know,  Ben  is  just  as  angry  at  Haskers 
as  Phil  is?  "  went  on  our  hero,  after  a  pause,  dur- 
ing which  both  had  hoped  that  their  close  chum 
would  return.  But  Phil  had  stalked  down  the 
stairs  and  out  of  the  building. 

"Ben?" 

"  Yes,  so  he  told  me  this  noon." 


PHIL  SHOWS  HIS  STUBBORNNESS       61 

"What  about?" 

"  Oh,  Ben  talked  in  class  and  old  Haskers 
penalized  him  heavily — gave  him  a  lot  of  extra 
Latin  to  do.     It  nearly  broke  Ben  up." 

"  You  told  Ben  about  that  Breen  affair,  didn't 
you?" 

11  Yes." 

"  Maybe  he  and  Phil  will  both  go  to  Haskers 
about  it." 

"  I  hope  not,  Roger.  I  don't  think  it  is  just 
the  right  thing  to  do — to  use  that  as  a  club  over 
Haskers  to  get  him  to  let  us  off.  I  don't  like 
that  kind  of  dealing." 

"  Neither  do  I.  But  it's  just  what  such  a  mean- 
spirited  fellow  as  Haskers  deserves.  He  has 
never  treated  us  squarely  since  we  came  here.  I 
think  this  school  would  be  a  good  deal  better  off 
without  him,  even  if  he  is  well  educated." 

Dave  heaved  a  deep  sigh.  He  was  on  the  point 
of  replying,  but  changed  his  mind.  He  took  up 
his  book  again,  and  soon  was  trying  his  best  to 
study.    Roger  followed  his  example. 

But  both  boys  made  slow  progress.  Each  was 
thinking  about  Phil.  What  would  be  the  outcome 
of  their  headstrong  chum's  actions? 


CHAPTER  VII 

PHIL  AND  BEN  MAKE  A  MOVE 

So  far  Dave  and  Nat  Poole  had  not  met  face 
to  face.  Our  hero  had  seen  the  money-lender's 
son  a  number  of  times,  but  Nat  had  always  been 
with  some  of  his  cronies  and  had,  apparently,  not 
taken  any  notice. 

But  on  the  morning  following  the  conversation 
just  recorded,  the  pair  came  face  to  face  in  one 
of  the  narrow  hallways. 

"  Good-morning,  Nat,"  said  Dave,  pleasantly. 

"  Morning,"  grumbled  the  other  student.  He 
was  about  to  pass  Dave,  but  suddenly  changed  his 
mind.     "  So  you  got  back,  eh?  " 

"  Yes,  I've  been  back  several  days." 

"  I  heard  that  Link  Merwell  got  away  from 
you?" 

"  That  is  true." 

"Humph!  If  I  had  the  chance  to  nab  him 
that  you  had,  I'd  not  let  him  get  away." 

"  We  held  Jasniff." 

"  Maybe  you  let  Merwell  go  on  purpose,"  con- 
tinued the  money-lender's  son,  shrewdly. 

62 


PHIL  AND  BEN  MAKE  A  MOVE  63 

"  Not  at  all,  Nat.  He  gave  us  the  slip,  clean 
and  clear." 

"  Humph!  "  Nat  paused  for  a  moment.  "  I 
got  word  from  my  dad  that  you  almost  smashed 
him  up  on  the  road  with  your  auto." 

"  Hardly  as  bad  as  that." 

"  He  is  going  to  make  your  uncle  pay  for  the 
damage  done." 

"  It  wasn't  much." 

"  It  was  enough.  You  want  to  be  more  care- 
ful with  your  car  after  this.  You  auto  fellows 
seem  to  think  you  own  the  whole  road." 

"What  about  your  motor-boat,  Nat?"  asked 
Dave.  He  remembered  how  the  money-lender's 
son  had  played  more  than  one  mean  trick  while 
running  the  craft. 

"Oh,  my  boat  is  all  right,  Dave  Porter!" 
sniffed  Nat;  and  then  he  moved  on,  with  a  scowl 
on  his  face. 

"  The  same  old  Nat,"  soliloquized  our  hero. 
"  Too  bad  that  he  can't  make  himself  a  bit  more 
agreeable." 

That  day  was  a  particularly  trying  one  in  the 
classroom.  The  lessons  were  unusually  hard, 
and  Dave  had  all  he  could  do  to  pass,  especially 
in  those  studies  presided  over  by  Professor  Has- 
kers.  Roger  made  one  miss  in  his  Latin  and 
poor  Phil  made  several,  while  Ben  Basswood's 
recitation  was  a  complete  failure. 


64   DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

As  was  usual  with  him,  Job  Haskers  was  exceed- 
ingly dictatorial,  and  said  some  cutting  things  that 
brought  the  blood  to  Dave's  face. 

"  You  must  do  much  better  than  this,  Porter 
and  Morr,"  said  the  professor.  "  Otherwise  I 
shall  have  to  place  you  in  the  next  lower  class. 
You,  Lawrence  and  Basswood,  have  failed  so  ut- 
terly that  I  will  have  to  take  your  cases  under 
immediate  consideration.    The  class  is  dismissed." 

"The  old  bear!"  growled  Ben,  under  his 
breath. 

He  looked  inquiringly  at  Phil,  and  the  latter 
nodded  knowingly. 

Dave  did  not  know  what  to  do.  He  did  not 
wish  Phil  and  Ben  to  get  into  further  trouble,  yet 
he  did  not  know  how  to  interfere.  Besides,  he 
was  suffering  himself  and  hardly  knew  what  to  do 
on  his  own  account. 

"  This  is  the  worst  yet,"  cried  Roger,  as  he  and 
our  hero  came  out  of  the  classroom  side  by  side. 

"  There  go  Phil  and  Ben,"  returned  Dave. 
"  Roger,  they  have  got  some  plan  up  their  sleeve." 

"  I  believe  you,  Dave.  I  wish  I  knew  what  to 
do.    Shall  we  go  to  Doctor  Clay?  " 

"  I've  been  thinking  of  that,  Roger.  But  I 
hate  to  do  it.     I'd  rather  fight  my  own  battles." 

"  So  would  I." 

"  Let  us  wait  until  to-morrow  and  see  if  things 
don't  take  a  turn  for  the  better." 


PHIL  AND  BEN  MAKE  A  MOVE         65 

"  All  right,  just  as  you  say.  But  it's  a  shame, 
the  way  old  Haskers  treats  us,"  grumbled  the 
senator's  son. 

In  the  meantime  Phil  and  Ben  had  gone  on 
ahead.  Both  were  exceeding  angry  and  conse- 
quently not  in  a  frame  of  mind  to  use  their  best 
judgment. 

"  It's  an  outrage !  "  burst  out  the  shipowner's 
son.  "  An  outrage,  Ben !  I  am  not  going  to  stand 
for  it!" 

"  Well,  I  am  with  you,  Phil,"  returned  Ben. 
"  But  what  can  we  do?  " 

"  You  know  what  I  spoke  about  last  evening?  " 

"  Yes." 

"  How  about  doing  that?  " 

"  I  am  with  you,  if  you  are  game." 

"  Of  course  we  may  make  old  Haskers  tearing 
mad." 

"  We'll  only  face  him  with  the  truth,  won't 
we?" 

"  Yes." 

11  Then,  let  us  do  it.  And  the  sooner  the 
better." 

"  Yes,  but  we  must  see  him  alone." 

"  Of  course.  I  think  we  can  manage  it  just  be- 
fore supper — when  he  goes  up  to  his  room  to  fix 
up  for  the  evening." 

The  two  chums  talked  the  affair  over  for  a 
long  time. 


66      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

"  I  don't  suppose  Dave  will  like  this,"  ventured 
Ben,  presently.     "  What  do  you  think?  " 

"  He  isn't  hit  as  hard  as  we  are,"  answered 
Phil,  lamely.  "  If  he  was — well,  he  might  look 
at  things  in  a  different  light." 

"  That's  so,"  answered  Ben.  But  deep  down 
in  his  heart  he  was  afraid  that  our  hero  would 
not  altogether  approve  of  what  he  and  Phil  pro- 
posed to  do. 

The  boys  took  a  walk,  and  purposely  kept  out 
of  the  way  of  Dave  and  Roger.  They  did  not 
return  to  the  Hall  until  fifteen  minutes  before  the 
first  bell  for  supper.  Then  they  came  in  by  a  side 
entrance  and  passed  swiftly  up  the  stairs  and 
along  the  hallway  to  the  room  occupied  by  Job 
Haskers. 

"  Who  is  it?  "  asked  the  teacher,  sharply,  when 
Phil  had  knocked. 

"  Mr.  Haskers,  it  is  Phil  Lawrence,"  was  the 
reply.  "  Ben  Basswood  is  with  me.  We  wish  to 
see  you." 

"  Ah,  indeed !  "  said  the  teacher,  coldly.  "  You 
come  to  me  at  an  unusual  hour.  You  may  see  me 
to-morrow,  before  class." 

"  Mr.  Haskers,  we  wish  very  much  to  see 
you  now,"  put  in  Ben. 

11  We  have  got  to  see  you,"  added  Phil,  warmly. 

There  was  no  immediate  reply  to  this.  The 
boys  heard  Job  Haskers  moving  around  the  room 


PHIL  AND  BEN  MAKE  A  MOVE  67 

and  heard  him  shut  a  bureau.  Then  the  door  was 
flung  open. 

"You  insist  upon  seeing  me,  eh?"  demanded 
the  professor,  harshly. 

"  We  do,  Mr.  Haskers,"  returned  Phil,  boldly. 

"Very  well,  young  gentlemen;  step  in."  And 
Job  Haskers  glared  at  the  boys  as  he  stood  aside 
for  them  to  enter. 

"  We  came  to  see  you,  sir,  about  those  Latin 
lessons,"  went  on  Phil,  finding  it  just  then  diffi- 
cult to  speak.  He  realized  that  Job  Haskers 
was  in  no  humor  for  being  lenient. 

"Well?"  shot  out  the  professor. 

"  We  feel  that  we  are  not  being  treated  fairly," 
put  in  Ben,  believing  he  should  not  make  Phil  do 
all  the  talking. 

"  Not  treated  fairly?  I  believe  I  am  the  best 
judge  of  that,  Basswood." 

"  Mr.  Haskers,  I  hate  to  say  it,  but  you  are  a 
hard-hearted  man !  "  cried  out  Phil,  the  door  being 
closed,  so  that  no  outsider  might  hear.  "  You 
are  not  giving  us  a  fair  chance.  The  other  teach- 
ers have  given  me  and  Dave  Porter  and  Roger 
Morr  several  weeks  in  which  to  make  up  those  les- 
sons we  missed  while  we  were  away.  You  wish 
to  give  us  only  a  week." 

"  And  you  didn't  give  me  a  fair  chance  to  make 
up,"  added  Ben. 

"See  here,  who  is  master  here,  you  or  I?" 


68   DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

demanded  Job  Haskers,  drawing  himself  up. 
"  Boys,  you  are  impudent!     I  will  not  stand  it!  " 

"  Yes,  you  will  stand  it,"  cried  Phil,  throwing 
caution  to  the  winds.  "  All  we  ask  is  a  fair  deal, 
and  you  have  got  to  give  it  to  us.  We'll  make  up 
those  lessons,  if  you'll  give  us  a  fair  amount  of 
time.  I  don't  intend  to  be  put  in  a  lower  class  for 
nothing." 

"  And  I'm  not  going  to  stand  it  either,"  came 
from  Ben. 

"Ha!  this  to  me?"  snarled  Job  Haskers. 
"  Take  care,  or  I'll  have  you  dismissed  from  the 
Hall !  " 

"  If  you  try  it,  it  will  be  the  worst  day's  work 
you  ever  did,  Mr.  Haskers,"  warned  the  ship- 
owner's son. 

"What,  you  threaten  me?" 

"  We  are  going  to  make  you  give  us  a  fair 
chance,  that  is  all.  And  if  you'll  do  that,  we'll  give 
you  a  fair  chance." 

"  Why,  why — you — you "  The  irate  in- 
structor knew  not  for  the  moment  how  to  pro- 
ceed. 

"  Mr.  Haskers,  I  think  you  had  better  listen 
to  me,"  pursued  Phil. 

"  I  have  listened  to  all  I  care  to  hear." 

"  Oh,  no,  you  haven't.  There  is  much  more — 
and  you  had  better  listen  closely — if  you  care  at 
all  for  your  reputation  here  at  Oak  Hall." 


PHIL  AND  BEN  MAKE  A  MOVE  69 

The  professor  stared  at  the  boy  and  grew  a 
trifle  pale. 

"  Wha — what  do  you — er — mean  by  that, 
Lawrence?  " 

"  I  hate  very  much  to  bring  this  subject  up, 
Mr.  Haskers,  but  you  practically  compel  me  to 
do  it.  If  you  will  only  promise  to  give  us  a  fair 
chance  to  make  up  our  lessons,  I  won't  say  a  word 
about  it." 

"Just  what  do  you  mean?"  faltered  the 
teacher. 

"  I  know  something  about  your  doings  in  the 
past — doings  which  are  of  no  credit  to  you.  If 
you  disgrace  Ben  and  me  by  degrading  us  in 
classes,  we'll  disgrace  you  by  telling  all  we  know." 

"And  what  do  you  know?"  demanded  Job 
Haskers,  hastily. 

"  We  know  a  good  deal,"  put  in  Ben. 

"  All  about  your  dealing  with  the  poor  widow, 
Mrs.  Breen,"  added  the  shipowner's  son.  "  How 
you  still  owe  her  for  board,  and  how  you  borrowed 
money  to  publish  a  book  that  was  never  issued." 

"Who  told  you  that?"  cried  Job  Haskers, 
stepping  back  in  consternation.  "  Who  told  you 
that  I  had  borrowed  money  from  her,  and  that  I 
owed  her  for  board?  " 

"  Never  mind  who  told  us,"  said  Ben.  "  We 
know  it  is  true." 

"  And  you  went  to  that  lawyer,  eh?  "  stormed 


70      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

Professor  Haskers.  "  You  got  him  to  threaten 
a  suit,  didn't  you?  I  got  his  letter  only  this 
afternoon." 

"  We  went  to  no  lawyer,"  answered  Phil. 

"  I  know  better!  I  see  it  all  now!  You  want 
to  get  me  into  trouble — to  disgrace  me  here!  " 
Job  Haskers  began  to  pace  the  floor.  "  It  is — 
er — a  mistake.  I  meant  to  pay  that  lady  but  it — 
er — slipped  my  mind.  And  the  book  has  been 
issued,  but  the  publishers  have  not — er — seen  fit 
to  push  it,  that  is  why  you  and  the  world  at  large 
have  not  heard  of  it." 

"  Mr.  Haskers,  we  haven't  told  anybody  about 
this,"  went  on  Phil,  pointedly.  "  You  can  settle 
with  that  lawyer,  whoever  he  may  be, — and  we'll 
not  say  a  word  to  anybody — that  is,  providing 
you'll  give  us  a  fair  chance  in  our  lessons." 

"  Ha !  maybe  you  wish  me  to  pass  you  with- 
out an  examination,"  cried  the  teacher,  cunningly. 

"No,  sir!  "  answered  Phil,  stoutly. 

"  We  simply  ask  for  more  time,  that  is  all," 
added  Ben.  "  We  don't  ask  any  favor.  We  can 
make  up  the  lessons  if  you  will  give  us  as  much 
time  as  the  other  teachers  would  give  us." 

"  You  have  not  told  anybody  of  this — this — er 
— affair  of  Mrs.  Breen?  " 

"  No." 

"  It  is  all  a  mistake,  but  I  should  not  like  it  to 
get  abroad.    It  would  hurt  my  reputation  a  great 


PHIL  AND  BEN  MAKE  A  MOVE  71 

deal.  I  shall  settle  the  matter  in  the  near  future. 
I  do  not  owe  that  lady  as  much  as  the  lawyer  says 
I  do, — but  that  is  not  your  affair."  Job  Haskers 
continued  to  pace  the  floor.  "  Now  about  your 
lessons,"  he  continued,  after  a  pause.  "  If  I — 
er — thought  that  I  had  really  been  too  hard  on 
you "     He  paused. 

"  You  certainly  have  been  hard,"  said  Phil 

"  And  if  you  really  need  more  time " 

"  Give  us  two  weeks  more  and  we'll  be  all 
right,"  put  in  Ben. 

"  And  if — er — if  I  should  decide  to  do  that,  you 
will— er " 

"  We'll  make  good — and  keep  our  mouths 
shut,"  finished  Phil. 

"  Very  well.  I  will  think  it  over,  young  gen- 
tlemen, and  let  you  know  to-morrow  morning, 
before  class.     And  in  the  meantime " 

"  We  won't  say  a  word  to  anybody,"  said  Ben, 
with  a  little  grin. 

"  So  be  it;  "  and  Job  Haskers  bowed.  "  There 
is  the  supper-bell.  You  may  go  now.  Come  to 
me  just  before  class  to-morrow,"  he  added;  and 
then  the  two  students  passed  out  of  the  room,  and 
the  teacher  shut  the  door  after  them. 


CHAPTER  VIII 

AN  UNUSUAL  COMPACT 

"He'll  do  it — he  is  bound  to  do  it!  "  cried 
Ben,  as  he  and  Phil  hurried  down  to  the  dining- 
room. 

"  I  think  so  myself,  Ben,"  answered  the  ship- 
owner's son.  But,  for  some  reason,  he  did  not 
seem  as  joyful  over  the  outcome  of  the  interview 
as  might  have  been  expected. 

"  He  won't  dare  let  this  news  become  public 
property,"  went  on  the  other  student.  "  He  is 
too  afraid  of  public  opinion." 

"  Ben,  he  thinks  we  got  that  lawyer  to  take 
the  case  up." 

"  You  told  him  we  hadn't." 

"  But  he  didn't  believe  it — I  could  tell  that  by 
his  manner.  And,  Ben,  do  you  know,  after  all, 
this  looks  to  me  as  if  we  had,  somehow,  bribed 
him  to  be  easy  on  us,"  continued  Phil,  with  added 
concern. 

"  Oh,  don't  bother  your  head  about  that,  Phil. 
We  only  asked  for  what  is  fair,  didn't  we?  " 

"  Yes,  but "    And  then  the  shipowner's  son 

72 


AN  UNUSUAL  COMPACT  73 

did  not  finish,  because  he  did  not  know  what  to 
say.  In  some  manner,  Phil's  conscience  troubled 
him,  and  he  wondered  what  Dave  and  Roger 
would  say  when  they  heard  of  what  had  occurred. 

During  the  meal  that  followed  but  little  was 
said  by  any  of  the  boys.  Once  or  twice  our  hero 
looked  at  Phil,  but  the  latter  avoided  his  gaze.  As 
soon  as  the  repast  was  over,  Phil  rushed  outside, 
followed  by  Ben;  and  that  was  the  last  seen  of 
the  pair  until  it  was  time  to  go  to  bed. 

"  They  have  been  up  to  something,  that  is  cer- 
tain," was  the  comment  of  the  senator's  son. 

41  Well,  we  can  only  wait  and  see  what  turns 
up,"  answered  Dave,  thoughtfully.  "  I  don't 
think  I  care  to  ask  them." 

In  the  morning,  when  Dave  got  up  he  looked 
over  to  where  Phil  was  in  the  habit  of  sleeping. 
The  bed  was  empty,  and  the  shipowner's  son  was 
gone. 

"  Dressed  half  an  hour  ago,"  said  another  of 
the  dormitory  inmates. 

"  Went  off  again  with  Ben,  I'll  wager,"  mur- 
mured Roger.  Ben  was  in  another  room,  across 
the  hallway,  that  term. 

Dave  and  Roger  had  been  hard  at  work  the 
evening  before,  doing  their  best  to  make  up  the 
lessons  they  had  missed  while  away  from  the 
school.  They  doubted  if  Phil  and  Ben  had  studied 
at  all.    With  considerable  curiosity  they  awaited 


74   DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

the  opening  of  the  morning  classes,  to  see  what 
might  happen.  They  felt  that  something  was  "  in 
the  air." 

Just  before  the  last  bell  rang  Phil  and  Ben  ap- 
peared, their  faces  wreathed  in  smiles. 

"  It's  all  right,  fellows!  "  cried  the  shipowner's 
son,  merrily.     "  It's  all  right!  " 

"  Now  we  can  take  our  time  making  up  those 
missed  lessons,"  added  Ben. 

"  You  went  to  old  Haskers?  "  queried  Roger. 

"  We  sure  did,"  answered  the  shipowner's 
son. 

"  And  told  him  about "  began  our  hero. 

"  Never  mind  what  we  told  him,  Dave,"  inter- 
rupted Phil.  "  We  did  tell  him  that  we  wanted 
to  make  up  the  lessons  but  couldn't  do  it  in  the 
time  he  had  allotted.  He  argued  it,  at  first,  but 
now  he  has  agreed  to  give  us  the  same  time  Mr. 
Dale  did,  three  weeks." 

"  Good!  "  exclaimed  Roger. 

"  You,  or  all  of  us?  "  asked  our  hero. 

"  All  of  us.  I  think  he'll  speak  to  you  at 
recess — he  said  he  would." 

"  What  did  he  say  when  you — when  you  men- 
tioned Mrs.  Breen?  "  asked  Roger. 

"  Hush,  somebody  might  hear  you!  "  returned 
Phil,  in  a  whisper.  "  We  have  promised  to  keep 
that  quiet." 

"  But  the  poor  woman "  began  Dave. 


AN  UNUSUAL  COMPACT  75 

"  Will  get  her  money,  never  fear.  A  lawyer 
has  already  written  about  it,  and  old  Haskers 
says  he  will  pay  up.  He  claims  it  is  all  a  mistake. 
But  he  doesn't  want  anybody  at  Oak  Hall  to 
get  wind  of  it." 

There  was  no  time  to  say  more,  and  evidently 
neither  Phil  nor  Ben  felt  in  the  humor  to  discuss 
the  affair.  The  early  morning  lesson  proceeded 
as  usual,  but  it  was  noticed  that  Professor  Has- 
kers was  much  subdued  in  his  manner  towards 
the  students. 

"  Porter  and  Morr,  I  wish  to  speak  to  you  at 
recess,"  said  he,  coming  down  to  where  the  two 
lads  sat.     "  Kindly  remain  here." 

When  the  other  students  had  left  the  class- 
room the  instructor  came  to  our  hero  and  his 
chum  and  motioned  for  them  to  follow  him  to 
a  private  room  close  by. 

11  I  wish  to  speak  to  you  about  the  lessons  you 
are  to  make  up,"  said  Job  Haskers,  after  clearing 
his  throat  several  times.  "  I  understand  that  you 
want  more  time." 

"  We  would  like  to  have  more  time,  yes,"  an- 
swered Dave,  briefly,  and  looking  the  teacher  full 
in  the  face. 

"  Can  you  do  the  lessons  in  three  weeks?  " 

"  Yes,  Mr.  Haskers,"  said  Dave,  and  Roger 
nodded  his  head. 

"  Then  you  can  take  that  much  time.    But,  re- 


76      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

member,  I  shall  expect  you  to — to — er — to  make 
up   the   lessons." 

"  Yes,  sir,"  came  from  both  students. 

"  If  you  need  more  time — or  any  assistance — 
possibly  I  can  arrange  it,"  went  on  Job  Haskers, 
eagerly. 

"  Thank  you,  if  you  give  me  three  weeks  I  am 
sure  I  can  make  up  the  lessons  to  your  satis- 
faction, Mr.  Haskers,"  came  from  our  hero. 

"  And  so  can  I,"  added  the  senator's  son. 
"  Anyway,  I'll  try  my  level  best." 

"  Very  well,  then,  we  will  let  it  stand  that  way." 
There  was  a  pause  and  the  instructor  bit  his  lip 
several  times.  "  By  the  way,  I — er — understand 
that  there  is  a  very  unpleasant  rumor  going  around 
concerning  me,"  he  proceeded.  "  It  is  all  a  mis- 
take which  I  shall  try  to  clear  up  without  delay. 
I  trust  that  you  will  not  attempt  to — er — to  cir- 
culate that  rumor  any  further." 

"  Mr.  Haskers,  do  you  mean  about  that  affair 
with  Mrs.  Breen?  "  demanded  Dave,  bluntly. 

"  Yes.  I  have  already  explained  to  Lawrence 
and  Basswood  that  it  is  a  mistake,  and  that  the 
widow  will  be  paid  all  that  is  due  her.     But  if 

this  should — er — be  mentioned  here "     The 

teacher  stopped  short  and  looked  sharply  at  Dave 
and  Roger. 

11  Mr.  Haskers,  let  us  understand  each  other," 
answered  Dave,  quickly.    "  I  have  no  desire  what- 


AN  UNUSUAL  COMPACT  77 

ever  to  get  you  or  anybody  else  into  trouble.  Nor 
do  I  want  to  ask  you  for  any  favors.  I  think 
we  are  justly  entitled  to  more  time  in  which  to 
make  up  those  lessons,  and  now  that  you  have 
granted  that  time,  I  shall  do  my  best  to  make  good. 
As  for  that  Mrs.  Breen  affair,  I  think  that  poor 
old  lady  ought  to  have  her  money.  I  understand 
some  lawyer  is  going  to  try  to  collect  it  for  her. 
Well,  if  you  settle  the  matter  I  shall  feel  very 
glad;  and  you  can  rest  assured  that  I  will  not  say 
a  word  about  the  matter  to  anybody  in  this  school, 
or  anywhere  else." 

"  You — er — you  give  me  your  word  on  that, 
Porter?  "  demanded  the  instructor,  eagerly. 

"  I  do." 

"And  you,  Morr?" 

"  Yes,  sir,"  answered  the  senator's  son. 

"  Who  else  is  there  who  knows  about  this — er 
— unpleasant  affair?  " 

"  Phil  Lawrence  and  Ben  Basswood,"  answered 
Roger. 

"No  other  students?  " 

"  Not  that  I  know  of." 

"  Very  well,  then."  Job  Haskers  drew  a  breath 
of  relief.  "  See  that  you  keep  your  word.  And 
about  the  lessons — if  three  weeks  are  not  long 
enough,  I  may — er — be  able  to  give  you  a  little 
more  time." 

"  That  time  will  be  enough,"  replied  Dave. 


78      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

"  We'll  make  it  with  ease,"  added  Roger. 

"  Then  that  is  settled,  and  you  may  go,"  and 
so  speaking,  Job  Haskers  left  the  room.  The  two 
boys  followed  him,  and  went  out  on  the  campus. 

"  How  did  you  make  out?  "  questioned  Phil,  as 
he  ran  up  to  them. 

"We  got  our  time,"  answered  Roger. 

"  But  let  me  tell  you  one  thing,"  said  Dave. 
"  After  this  Haskers  is  going  to  hate  us  worse 
than  ever." 

"  I  don't  see  why,"  declared  the  shipowner's 
son.  "  I  think  we  are  letting  him  off  mighty 
easy." 

"  He  feels  as  if  he  had  been  forced  into  doing 
what  we  want,"  went  on  Dave.  "  I  think  he  looks 
at  it  as  if  you  had  used  that  Mrs.  Breen  incident 
as  a  club  over  him." 

"  Well,  it  was  a  club  in  one  sense,  Dave." 

"  I  know  it,  Phil,  and,  although  I  am  glad  we 
have  won  out  and  gotten  that  extra  time,  still  I  am 
sorry  that  you  and  Ben  went  to  him  as  you  did." 

"  Humph !  did  you  think  I  was  going  to  sit  still 
and  be  put  back  into  a  lower  class?  " 

"  Maybe  it  might  have  been  better  if  you  had 
gone  to  Doctor  Clay." 

"  I  don't  think  so,"  replied  Phil,  shortly;  and 
then  the  school-bell  rang  again  and  all  the  boys 
had  to  go  to  their  next  classes. 

In  spite  of  the  cloud  that  thus  hung  over  the 


AN  UNUSUAL  COMPACT  79 

affair,  every  one  of  the  chums  was  glad  of  the 
extra  time  in  which  to  make  up  the  lost  lessons. 
Not  one  of  them  had  to  grind  away  as  hard  as  be- 
fore, and  Dave  took  a  little  time  off,  in  which 
to  send  a  letter  to  his  father  and  another  to 
Jessie. 

The  next  day  was  warm  and  pleasant  and,  after 
school-hours,  Roger  proposed  to  Dave  that  they 
take  a  walk  up  the  woods  road  back  of  the  school. 

"  All  right,  a  walk  in  the  woods  will  do  us 
good,"  was  the  answer.  "  Shall  we  ask  some  of 
the  others?  " 

"  If  you  wish,"  and  in  the  end  Phil  went  along, 
and  also  Buster  Beggs  and  Gus  Plum. 

"  My,  but  I  had  a  run-in  with  old  Haskers 
this  afternoon,"  said  the  stout  youth.  "  I  came 
close  to  carrying  the  matter  to  the  doctor." 

"  What  was  it  about?  "  questioned  Dave. 

"  Oh,  nothing  at  all,  to  my  way  of  thinking.  I 
went  to  the  library  to  get  a  book  and  he  accused 
me  of  wasting  my  class  time.  He  was  very  ugly. 
I  won't  stand  for  much  more  of  it,"  grumbled 
Buster. 

Dave  said  no  more,  but  he  and  Roger  ex- 
changed glances.  Evidently  the  irate  instructor 
was  going  to  "  take  it  out  of  somebody,"  as  the 
saying  goes. 

The  boys  walked  on  and  on,  along  the  road, 
until  Oak  Hall  was  left  far  behind.    Soon  Buster 


8o      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

forgot  his  troubles,  and  the  crowd  were  chatting 
gayly  of  many  things. 

"  Call  for  candidates  for  the  baseball  team 
next  Saturday,"  announced  Gus  Plum.  "  I  hope 
we  get  up  a  team  this  year  that  knocks  the  spots 
out  of  Rockville  Military  Academy  and  all  the 
other  institutions  we  cross  bats  with." 

"  Are  you  going  to  try  for  the  nine  this  term,. 
Gus?  "  questioned  Dave. 

"  Sure!  Why  not?  You'll  try,  won't  you?" 
went  on  the  big  youth,  in  surprise. 

"  No,  I've  decided  not  to  go  into  athletics  this 
term,  Gus.  I  want  to  give  all  my  time  to  my 
studies." 

"  Yes,  but  the  nine  needs  you,  Dave!  "  put  in 
Buster.  "  I  heard  some  of  the  fellows  talking 
about  it  only  yesterday.  They  had  you  slated 
for  your  old  position." 

"  Well,  if  Gus  wants  to  play,  he  can  fill  the 
box,"  answered  Dave. 

"  But  we  need  more  than  one  pitcher,"  insisted 
Buster. 

"  There  are  plenty  of  new  students  coming 
along.  I  hear  Thomas  is  a  good  one,  and  so  is 
Ennis." 

"  I'm  not  going  to  play,  either,"  said  Roger. 
"  I  want  to  graduate  with  all  the  honors  possible." 

"How  about  you,  Phil?" 

"  I — I   think    I'll    play,"    answered   the    ship- 


AN  UNUSUAL  COMPACT  81 

owner's  son,  rather  lamely.  "  I'll  see  about  it 
later." 

"  Well,  I  don't  want  to  neglect  my  studies," 
said  Gus  Plum.  "But  I  have  done  some  hard 
work  this  winter  and  so  I  am  pretty  well  ahead. 
I  didn't  lose  time  going  to  Cave  Island,  you 
know,"  he  added,  with  a  smile. 

"  Well,  it  was  worth  it — losing  that  time,"  an- 
swered Dave.  "  It  saved  Mr.  Wadsworth  from 
ruin,  and  that's  a  good  deal." 

"  If  the  baseball  nine "    commenced  Buster, 

and  then  broke  off  short.  "  What  was  that?  " 
he  demanded,  as  a  cry  from  a  distance  broke  on 
the  ears  of  all. 

"It's  a  woman's  voice!  "  cried  Dave,  quickly. 
"  She  is  calling  for  help !  Come  on  and  see  what 
is  the  matter!"  And  he  started  off  on  a  run, 
with  his  school  chums  at  his  heels. 


CHAPTER  IX 

THE   KING  OF   SUMATRA 

The  boys  had  been  traveling  along  a  broad 
highway  that  ran  to  a  town  on  the  other  side  of 
the  woods.  The  trees  were  thick  and  so  were  the 
bushes,  with  here  and  there  a  big  rock,  covered 
with  the  dead  vines  of  the  summer  previous. 

At  one  point  some  distance  ahead  was  an  old 
stone  house,  standing  where  another  road  ran  in 
the  direction  of  the  river.  This  house  had  not 
been  inhabited  for  years,  and  the  doors  and  win- 
dows were  gone,  and  the  falling  of  the  chimney 
had  smashed  in  a  large  portion  of  the  sloping 
roof. 

It  was  from  in  front  of  the  old  house  that 
the  cries  for  assistance  came,  and  now  the  boys 
heard  two  voices,  both  somewhat  girlish  in 
tones. 

"  Oh,  let  me  go!  Please,  let  me  go!  "  came, 
wildly. 

"  You  have  no  right  to  touch  us !  "  was  added, 
in  another  voice. 

"What's  the  matter?"   called  out  Dave,   as 


THE  KING  OF  SUMATRA  83 

loudly  as  he  could.  But  in  his  mind  there  had 
already  flashed  an  inkling  of  what  was  going  on. 
For  some  time  past  the  wild  man  of  that  locality 
had  not  shown  himself.  Now,  perhaps,  he  was 
again  at  his  old  tricks. 

"  Oh,  make  him  go  away!  "  screamed  a  girl- 
ish voice,  and  then,  as  our  hero  made  a  turn  of 
the  road,  he  caught  sight  of  two  girls  standing 
near  the  old  stone  house.  Back  of  them  was  an- 
other figure,  that  of  a  tall,  powerful  man,  but 
this  figure  disappeared  as  if  by  magic,  behind  the 
ancient  building. 

"Why,  Miss  Rockwell!"  exclaimed  Dave,  as 
he  recognized  a  young  lady  from  town  whom  he 
knew  well.  "And  you,  too,  Miss  Feversham! 
What  is  the  matter?  " 

"That  man — the  wild  man!"  panted  Vera 
Rockwell.     "  He — he — stopped  us!  " 

"  He  wanted  our  purses !  "  added  Mary  Fev- 
ersham, the  other  young  lady. 

"Where  is  he?"  asked  Roger  and  Phil,  in  a 
breath. 

"  He  just  ran  behind  the  house — I  saw  him," 
answered  Dave.  "  Did  he  hurt  you  any?  "  he 
went  on,  anxiously,  for  he  and  Vera  and  Mary 
were  good  friends. 

"  No,  but  he — he  scared  us  so!  " 

"Let  us  go  after  him!  "  put  in  Phil,  quickly. 
He  had  taken  Mary  Feversham  out  a  number  of 


84      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

times  and  the  two  were  well  acquainted.  "  Come 
on!  "  and  he  started  around  the  house. 

All  of  the  others  were  not  slow  to  follow.  Be- 
hind the  building  they  came  upon  a  mass  of  weeds 
and  bushes  and  in  their  midst  the  remains  of  an 
old  well,  long  since  caved  in.  What  had  once 
been  a  path  led  to  the  side  road  before  men- 
tioned. 

"  That's  the  way  he  must  have  gone — down  the 
side  road!  "  cried  the  shipowner's  son. 

"  Supposing  we  see  if  we  can  catch  him?  " 
suggested  Dave.  "  But  somebody  ought  to  go 
back,  and  stay  with  the  girls,"  he  added  thought- 
fully. 

"  I'll  go  back,"  answered  Phil.  He  was  only 
too  glad  of  a  chance  to  talk  to  Mary,  not  having 
seen  her  for  a  long  time. 

"  If  that  fellow  comes  back,  whistle  for  us," 
advised  Roger. 

Dave  was  already  on  the  side  road  with  Buster 
and  Gus  beside  him,  and  the  senator's  son  quickly 
followed. 

"  Don't  go  too  fast  or  I — I  can't  ke — keep  up 
with  you!  "  panted  Buster. 

"  Do  you  see  anything  of  him,  Dave?  "  queried 
Roger. 

"  Not  yet,  but  there  is  a  turn  just  ahead.  When 
we  make  that  we'll  be  able  to  see  almost  to  the 
river." 


THE  KING  OF  SUMATRA  85 

All  of  the  students  sped  on,  the  stout  lad  do- 
ing his  best  to  keep  up  with  the  others.  They 
reached  the  turn  with  Dave  a  step  or  two  in 
advance. 

"There  he  is!" 

"  I  see  him!    Say,  he's  wild-looking  enough!  " 

"  He  is  making  for  the  river!  " 

"  We  ought  to  be  able  to  catch  him.  We  are 
four  to  one." 

Dave  and  Roger  pressed  forward  with  in- 
creased speed  and  poor  Buster  fell  somewhat  be- 
hind. 

"I'm  coming  as  fa — fast  as  I  ca — can!" 
blurted  out  the  fat  youth.  "  Go  on — I'll  get  there 
sooner  or  later!  " 

"  Pick  up  a  stick,  if  you  see  one,"  cried  Dave, 
to  Roger  and  Gus.  "  We  may  have  a  hot  fight  on 
our  hands.  That  man  ought  to  be  in  jail,  or  in 
an  asylum." 

As  they  sped  along,  the  three  kept  their  eyes 
open  and  each  presently  armed  himself  with  a  fair- 
sized  club.  The  wild  man  was  running  like  a  deer, 
pausing  occasionally  to  turn  and  brandish  his  long 
arms  at  them  savagely.  They  could  see  that  his 
clothing  was  in  tatters  and  that  his  hair  and  beard 
were  long  and  unkempt. 

11  Hi!  stop!  "  called  out  Dave,  although  he  had 
but  little  hope  of  causing  the  man  to  halt.  "  We 
want  to  talk  to  you." 


86   DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

"Go  back!  Beware!  Go  back,  or  it  will  be 
the  worse  for  you  !  "  called  the  wild  man.  "  Leave 
the  King  of  Sumatra  alone !  " 

"The  King  of  Sumatra?"  repeated  Roger. 
"  Say,  he's  crazy  sure  enough,  to  imagine  himself 
that!" 

The  boys  continued  after  the  wild  man  and 
urged  him  to  stop.  But  instead  of  heeding  them, 
he  ran  on  the  faster. 

"  He's  an  athlete,  when  it  comes  to  running," 
remarked  Dave,  as  he  tried  in  vain  to  get  closer 
to  the  man. 

"  They  say  crazy  people  are  always  strong," 
answered  the  senator's  son. 

"  I've  go — got  to  gi — give  up !  "  panted  Gus, 
and  came  to  a  halt.  "  Go — got  a  pa — pain  in  my 
side!  "    And  he  put  his  hand  over  his  hip. 

"  All  right,  we'll  manage  alone!  "  cried  Roger. 
"  I  don't  think  we  can  catch  that  fellow  anyway," 
he  added,  half  under  his  breath. 

Another  turn  of  the  woodland  road  brought  the 
Leming  River  into  plain  view,  at  a  point  where 
the  stream  was  both  wide  and  deep.  The  wild 
man  kept  sprinting  along  and  it  was  impossible 
for  the  boys  to  draw  any  closer  to  him. 

"  Shall  we  threaten  to  shoot  him  if  he  won't 
stop?  "  asked  Roger.  Neither  of  the  lads  carried 
firearms. 

"  No,  he  might  do  some  shooting  on  his  own 


Stop!"  cried  Dave. — Page  87. 


THE  KING  OF  SUMATRA  87 

account, — if  he  is  armed.  Come  on,  he  may  fall, 
or  something  like  that." 

Inside  of  three  minutes  more  the  wild  man 
gained  the  shore  of  the  river  and  disappeared 
around  a  point  of  rocks  and  brushwood. 

"  Be  careful,  Dave,"  warned  Roger.  "  He 
may  spring  out  at  you  with  a  club." 

"  I've  got  my  eyes  open,"  was  the  ready  reply. 

Both  advanced  with  caution,  and  soon  came  up 
to  the  nearest  of  the  rocks.  With  clubs  ready  for 
use,  the  two  youths  continued  to  move  forward. 
Then  they  came  to  a  sudden  halt.  The  wild  man 
was  no  longer  in  sight.  What  had  become  of 
him? 

"  Maybe  he  ran  into  the  woods,"  suggested 
Roger. 

"  Perhaps,  but — hark!  "  And  our  hero  held 
up  his  hand.  From  a  distance  came  a  scraping 
sound,  like  something  sliding  over  a  rock. 

"  Look!  "  called  out  the  senator's  son.  "  He's 
got  a  boat!    There  he  goes!  " 

Dave  turned  in  the  direction  pointed  out  by  his 
chum.  Both  saw  a  small  rowboat  sweep  out  from 
under  some  brushwood.  In  it  stood  the  wild 
man,  using  an  oar  as  a  pole  on  the  rocks. 

"  Stop!  "  cried  Dave.  "  Stop,  or  you  may  be 
sorry  for  it." 

"  You  can't  catch  the  King  of  Sumatra !  " 
yelled  the  wild  man,  and  flourished  his  arms  and 


88      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

made  a  hideous  face  at  them.  Then  he  sat  down 
on  the  middle  seat  of  the  craft,  placed  the  oars  in 
the  rowlocks,  and  commenced  to  row  rapidly 
down  the  stream. 

"  Well,  that's  the  end  of  the  chase,"  remarked 
Dave,  in  some  disgust. 

"  That's  right,  since  we  haven't  any  boat,"  re- 
turned Roger.  "  Wonder  where  he  got  that 
craft?    I  don't  think  he  bought  it." 

"  It  isn't  likely.  Probably  he  saw  it  somewhere 
along  the  river  and  simply  appropriated  it."  And 
this  proved  to  be  true. 

The  boys  watched  the  wild  man  until  a  bend  of 
the  stream  hid  rower  and  craft  from  view.  Then 
they  turned  back  in  the  direction  of  the  old  stone 
house. 

"Did  you  get  him?"  demanded  Buster,  who 
was  waiting  with  Gus  at  the  point  where  he  had 
dropped  out  of  the  race. 

"  No,"  answered  Roger,  and  told  why. 

"  He  sure  is  a  cute  one,"  went  on  the  stout 
youth.  "  Say,  if  they  don't  catch  him  soon,  he'll 
have  this  whole  neighborhood  scared  to  death." 

The  students  soon  reached  the  old  house. 
Here  they  found  the  two  girls  and  Phil,  the  latter 
with  a  heavy  stick  in  his  hand,  ready  for  any 
emergency.  The  girls  had  calmed  down  a  little, 
but  were  still  much  agitated. 

"  We  were  to  come  home  in  my  uncle's  car- 


THE  KING  OF  SUMATRA  89 

riage,"  said  Mary  Feversham.  "  But  the  horse 
got  a  lame  foot  and  so  we  decided  to  walk.  We 
had  heard  of  the  wild  man,  but  did  not  think  we 
would  meet  him.     Oh,  it  was  dreadful!  " 

"  He  didn't  hurt  you,  did  he?  "  asked  Dave. 

"  Oh,  no,  but  he  frightened  us  so !  He  danced 
around  us  and  caught  us  by  the  arms,  and  he 
wanted  us  to  give  him  money !  Oh,  it  was  dread- 
ful!" 

"  He  ought  to  be  in  an  asylum,"  said  Dave. 
And  then  he  and  Roger  related  how  the  wild  man 
had  escaped. 

"  I  sha'n't  go  out  alone  again,"  said  Vera 
Rockwell.  "  That  is,  not  until  that  man  is  cap- 
tured." 

"  We'll  take  you  both  home,"  said  Phil, 
promptly,  looking  at  Mary. 

"  But  we  don't  want  to  keep  you  from  what 
you  were  going  to  do,"  said  Vera. 

"  Oh,  we  were  only  out  for  a  walk,"  replied 
Dave.  "  We'll  walk  to  town  with  you.  Maybe 
we'll  hear  something  more  of  this  strange  fellow." 

All  turned  back  on  the  road  that  led  close  to 
Oak  Hall,  and  after  discussing  the  wild  man  from 
various  points  of  view,  the  conversation  turned 
to  other  matters.  The  girls  told  of  what  they  had 
been  doing  during  the  past  holidays  and  asked  the 
boys  about  themselves. 

"  I  heard  that  that  horrid  Jasniff  is  under  ar- 


go      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

rest,"  said  Vera  to  Dave.  "  I  am  glad  of  it.  It 
is  a  pity  that  Merwell  got  away." 

"  Perhaps,"  answered  our  hero.  "  But,  some- 
how, I  sometimes  think  that  Link  Merwell  will 
turn  over  a  new  leaf." 

Vera  looked  back,  to  make  sure  that  none  of  the 
others  were  near. 

"  Just  like  Mr.  Plum,  I  suppose  you  mean," 
she  whispered.  "  Oh,  it  was  splendid,  what  you 
did  for  him,  Dave!  " 

"  Oh,  I  didn't  do  much  for  Gus." 

"  My  brother  thinks  you  did.  He  heard  the 
whole  story.  It  was  brave  and  noble  of  you,  it 
was  indeed!  "  And  Vera's  face  showed  her  ear- 
nestness. 

11  Well,  Gus  has  turned  out  a  nice  fellow.  I 
wish  Merwell  would  turn  out  as  good." 

"  But  he  helped  to  take  those  jewels." 

"  That  is  true — and  that  will  always  be  a  black 
mark  against  him,"  said  Dave,  soberly. 

Soon  all  reached  the  outskirts  of  Oakdale  and 
there,  at  one  of  the  corners,  the  boys  left  the  girls. 

"  Pretty  late !  "  cried  Gus  Plum,  consulting  the 
watch  he  carried.  "  We'll  have  to  hike  back 
lively,  if  we  don't  want  to  be  marked  up  for 
tardiness." 

"  We  can  get  an  excuse,  if  we  tell  about  the 
wild  man,"  said  Buster.  "  I've  hurried  all  I'm 
going  to," 


THE  KING  OF  SUMATRA  91 

"  We'll  certainly  have  a  yarn  to  spin  when  we 
get  back  to  the  school,"  was  Phil's  comment. 

At  the  entrance  to  the  campus  the  boys,  who 
were  a  little  late,  met  the  first  assistant  to  Doctor 
Clay.  As  my  old  readers  know  Mr.  Dale  was 
as  pleasant  as  Job  Haskers  was  disagreeable. 

"Had  a  fine  walk,  boys?"  he  asked,  with  a 
smile. 

"  We  had  an  adventure,"  answered  Dave,  and 
then  he  and  his  chums  told  what  it  was. 

"  Well!  well !  that  wild  man  again,"  mused  the 
instructor.  "  This  is  getting  truly  serious.  I  was 
hoping  he  would  leave  this  neighborhood.  And 
so  he  calls  himself  the  King  of  Sumatra?  That 
is  strange." 

"  It  certainly  is  strange,"  answered  Dave. 

But  how  strange,  our  hero  was  still  to  find  out 


CHAPTER  X 

NAT  POOLE  WANTS  TO  KNOW 

That  evening  Dave  was  on  his  way  to  the 
school  library,  to  consult  a  certain  work  of  refer- 
ence, when  he  ran  into  another  student  who  sud- 
denly grasped  him  by  the  shoulder.  It  was  rather 
dark  where  the  pair  confronted  each  other,  and 
for  the  instant  our  hero  did  not  recognize  the 
fellow. 

"  What  do  you  want?  " 

"  I  want  to  speak  to  you  for  a  minute,  Dave 
Porter,"  said  the  other,  in  a  voice  that  trembled 
a  trifle. 

"  Oh,  it's  you,  Nat,"  answered  Dave,  as  he 
recognized  the  son  of  the  Crumville  money- 
lender. "What  do  you  want?"  He  rather 
imagined  that  the  youth  wished  to  pick  another 
quarrel  with  him. 

"  I — I  want  to  talk  in  private  with  you,"  re- 
turned Nat,  and  looked  around,  to  see  if  anybody 
else  was  near. 

"What  about?" 

"  You  were  out  walking  this  afternoon  and  met 
that  wild  man,  so  I  heard." 

92 


NAT  POOLE  WANTS  TO  KNOW         93 

"  That  is  true." 

"  You  tried  to  catch  him,  didn't  you?  " 

"  Yes,  Roger  Morr,  Buster  Beggs,  Gus  Plum, 
and  I  did  our  best  to  collar  him,  but  he  was 
too  fast  for  us.  He  ran  down  to  the  river,  got 
into  a  rowboat,  and  rowed  away." 

"  So  I  heard.  And  I  heard  something  else," 
continued  the  boy  from  Crumville.  "  When  you 
called  to  the  man  to  stop  he  answered  back,  didn't 
he?" 

11  Yes." 

"  Will  you  please  tell  me  what  he  said?  "  And 
Nat's  voice  had  an  eager  ring  in  it. 

"  He  told  us  to  beware  and  go  back,  or  we'd 
get  into  trouble." 

"  Didn't  he  say  something  more  than  that?  " 

"  Oh,  yes,  a  great  deal  more." 

"  He  called  himself  something,  didn't  he?  " 

"Yes.  Look  here,  Nat,  what  is  this  to  you? 
Why  are  you  so  interested?  "  queried  Dave,  for 
he  could  easily  perceive  that  the  other  youth  was 
more  than  ordinarily  anxious  to  know  the  par- 
ticulars of  what  had  occurred. 

"  I — I — want  to — er — know,  that's  all.  Did 
he  call  himself  anything?  " 

"Yes;  he  thinks  he  is  the  King  of  Suma- 
tra." 

"  He  called  himself  that?  "  asked  Nat,  with  in- 
creased excitement. 


94      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

"  Yes,  two  or  three  times.  But  see  here, 
Nat " 

"  Will  you  please  tell  me  how  he  looked?  Was 
he  tall  and  rather  thin?" 

11  Yes." 

"  And  what  kind  of  hair  did  he  have?  " 

"  Brownish-red,  as  near  as  I  could  make  out, 
and  very  long.  And  he  had  rather  a  long  beard 
and  a  large  nose,"  went  on  our  hero. 

At  this  brief  but  accurate  description  of  the 
wild  man,  Nat  Poole  paled  a  trifle  and  uttered 
something  of  a  gasp. 

"  Whe — where  did  he  go?"  he  faltered. 

"  He  rowed  down  the  river  just  as  fast  as  he 
could.  I  don't  know  how  far  he  went,  for  the 
bend  hid  him  from  view,"  answered  our  hero. 
"  Say,  Nat,  do  you  think  you  know  that  man?  " 

"Why — er — know  him?  Of  course  I  don't 
know  him,"  was  the  stammered-out  reply.  "  But 
I — I  think — maybe — I've  met  him."  And  then, 
to  avoid  further  questioning,  Nat  Poole  hur- 
ried away.  Our  hero  could  do  nothing  but  stare 
after  him. 

"  That  is  mighty  queer,"  mused  Dave,  as  he 
turned  into  the  library  to  consult  the  reference 
book.  "  If  Nat  doesn't  know  the  man,  why  was 
he  so  anxious?  He  acted  scared  to  death  when 
I  said  the  fellow  called  himself  the  King  of 
Sumatra." 


NAT  POOLE  WANTS  TO  KNOW         95 

Dave  remained  in  the  school  library  for  a  half 
an  hour  and  then  joined  Phil,  Roger,  and  the 
others  in  Dormitory  Number  Twelve.  He  found 
the  students  discussing  a  talk  Roger  had  had  with 
Nat  Poole  only  a  few  minutes  before. 

"  Nat  called  me  out  in  the  hallway,"  said  the 
senator's  son.  "  He  wanted  to  know  all  about 
that  wild  man,  and  he  wanted  to  make  dead  cer- 
tain that  he  had  called  himself  the  King  of 
Sumatra." 

"  That  is  certainly  queer — on  top  of  what  hap- 
pened to  me,"  said  Dave,  and  told  of  the  inter- 
view he  had  had. 

"  Well,  this  is  a  puzzle,"  declared  Phil,  slowly. 
"  What  do  you  make  of  it,  Dave?  " 

"  I  think  Nat  imagines  he  knows  the  wild 
man." 

"  That's  the  way  it  looks  to  me,"  added  the 
senator's  son. 

"  Say,  you  don't  suppose  that  wild  man  has 
anything  to  do  with  the  fellows  Nat  used  to 
train  with — Jasniff,  Merwell,  and  that  crowd?" 
questioned  Buster. 

"  It's  possible,  but  I  don't  think  so,"  returned 
our  hero.  "  He  is  surely  a  crazy  individual,  and 
as  nobody  around  here  seems  to  know  him,  he 
must  be  a  stranger  to  these  parts." 

"But  what  would  make  Nat  so  interested?" 
asked  little  Chip  Macklin. 


96      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

"  Give  it  up,"  answered  Roger. 

"  Maybe  he  has  something  to  tell,  but  won't  tell 
it  to  us,"  ventured  Phil.  "  He  may  go  right  to 
the  doctor." 

But  if  Nat  Poole  went  to  the  master  of  Oak 
Hall,  or  to  anybody  else  at  that  institution,  the 
boys  did  not  hear  of  it.  He  asked  no  more  ques- 
tions about  the  wild  man,  and  when  any  of  our 
friends  came  near  him  he  immediately  walked 
away,  thus  avoiding  an  interview. 

The'proposed  meeting  of  the  athletic  committee 
of  Oak  Hall  was  held  on  Saturday  afternoon  in 
the  gymnasium  and  was  well  attended.  An  even 
twenty  names  had  been  put  up  for  the  regular 
baseball  nine  of  the  institution.  Of  these  names, 
fifteen  belonged  to  old  students  and  five  were 
those  of  newcomers  to  Oak  Hall.  As  he  had  said 
he  would  do,  Gus  Plum  had  handed  in  his  name, 
and  so  had  Sam  Day  and  some  of  our  other 
friends.  But  Dave,  Phil,  and  Roger  were  con- 
spicuous by  their  absence. 

"  See  here,  Porter,  you're  going  to  play,  aren't 
you?  "  asked  the  former  manager. 

11  No,"  answered  Dave,  quietly  but  firmly. 

"Why  not?" 

"  Well,  in  the  first  place,  I  have  too  many  back 
lessons  to  make  up,  and  in  the  second  place,  I  hope 
to  graduate  this  coming  June,  and  I  want  to  make 
a  record  for  myself,  if  possible." 


NAT  POOLE  WANTS  TO  KNOW         97 

"  But  you  can  do  that  and  play  on  the  nine, 
too,"  urged  the  manager. 

"  I  don't  think  so.  I'd  like  to  play,"  continued 
our  hero,  wistfully,  "  but  I  don't  see  how  I 
can." 

"  This  isn't  fair,  Porter.    We  really  need  you." 

"  Oh,  it  isn't  as  bad  as  that,"  returned  Dave, 
with  a  faint  smile.  "  You've  got  Gus  Plum  to 
pitch,  and  some  of  the  others.  There  are  plenty 
of  good  ball-players  here  this  term." 

"  I  don't  know  about  that,"  answered  the  man- 
ager, with  a  grave  shake  of  his  head.  "  I  wish 
you'd  come  in." 

"  Not  this  year,"  said  Dave;  and  then  the  two 
separated. 

Phil  and  Roger  were  likewise  urged  to  try  for 
the  nine,  but  they  followed  Dave's  example. 
Then  a  tentative  nine  was  formed,  with  Gus  Plum 
as  pitcher,  and  also  a  "  scrub  "  nine,  with  one  of 
the  newcomers  to  Oak  Hall  in  the  box.  Prac- 
tice was  to  start  on  Wednesday  afternoon  of  the 
following  week. 

"  Too  bad  we  couldn't  take  part,"  sighed  the 
shipowner's  son.  "  I'd  like  to  wallop  the  Rock- 
ville  Military  Academy  fellows  just  once  more!  " 

u  Well,  we  can't  have  everything,"  answered 
Dave.  "  I  want  to  graduate  with  the  highest  pos- 
sible honors,  and  that  means  plenty  of  hard 
boning." 


98      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

"  And  a  fellow  can't  bone  and  play  ball,  too," 
added  Roger. 

"  We  might — if  old  Haskers  would  be  easy 
on  us,"  murmured  the  shipowner's  son. 

"  Now,  see  here,  Phil,"  said  Dave,  almost 
sternly.  "  Don't  ask  Haskers  for  any  more  fa- 
vors. He  has  done  all  that  can  reasonably  be 
expected  of  him." 

"  All  right,  just  as  you  say,"  grumbled  Phil. 
But  his  manner  showed  that  he  was  not  altogether 
satisfied. 

A  week  went  by,  and  Dave  and  his  chums  ap- 
plied themselves  diligently  to  their  studies.  Dur- 
ing that  time  nothing  more  was  heard  of  the  wild 
man,  and  the  excitement  concerning  that  strange 
individual  again  died  down.  But  the  folks  living 
in  the  vicinity  of  the  woods  back  of  Oak  Hall 
were  on  their  guard,  and  it  was  seldom  that 
women  and  children  went  out  alone. 

The  boys  were  doing  very  well  in  their  studies, 
and  Dave  received  warm  words  of  encouragement 
from  Andrew  Dale.  He  had  made  up  nearly  all 
the  back  lessons  imposed  upon  him  by  Job  Has- 
kers, and  that  dictatorial  teacher  could  not  help 
but  be  satisfied  over  the  showing  made.  Roger 
was  also  doing  well,  and  poor  Phil  was  the  only 
one  who  was  backward,  although  not  enough  to 
cause  alarm. 

"  I'll  get  there,  but  it  comes  hard,"  said  the 


NAT  POOLE  WANTS  TO  KNOW         99 

shipowner's  son.  "  I  should  have  asked  old  Has- 
kers  for  more  time." 

"  Don't  you  do  it,"  answered  Dave.  "  Come, 
I'll  help  you  all  I  can."    Which  he  did. 

One  day  there  came  a  letter  to  our  hero  which 
gave  him  great  satisfaction.  He  read  it  care- 
fully, and  then  hastened  off  to  communicate  the 
news  to  Phil,  Roger,  and  Ben. 

"  It's  a  letter  from  my  Uncle  Dunston,"  he 
explained  to  his  chums.  "  If  you  will  remem- 
ber, he  said  he  would  hire  a  lawyer  to  take  up 
that  Mrs.  Breen  case  against  Professor  Has- 
kers." 

"  What  does  he  say?  "  asked  Roger,  quickly. 

"  I  will  read  it  to  you,"  answered  Dave,  and 
read  the  following: 

"  You  will  be  glad  to  learn  that  Mr.  Loveland, 
one  of  our  lawyers,  has  gotten  a  settlement  for 
Mrs.  Breen  out  of  your  teacher,  Mr.  Haskers. 
He  had  quite  a  time  of  it,  Haskers  declaring  that 
he  did  not  owe  as  much  as  the  widow  said  he  did. 
[The  lawyer  said  he  would  sue  for  the  full  amount, 
and  then  Haskers  came  to  see  him.  Mr.  Love- 
land  says  the  teacher  wanted  to  learn  who  had 
hired  him  to  stir  the  matter  up,  and  mentioned 
some  students'  names.  But  the  lawyer  gave  him 
no  satisfaction  at  all,  and  at  last  Haskers  paid  up 
in  full,  took  his  receipt,  and  got  out.  I  instructed 
Mr.  Loveland  to  put  his  charges  for  services  on 
our  bill,  so  Mrs.  Breen  will  get  the  entire  amount 


ioo      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

collected.  I  am  going  to  take  it  to  her  in  person, 
and  see  to  it  that  it  is  wisely  invested  for  her 
benefit." 


"  Good!  "  cried  the  senator's  son.  "  That  will 
help  the  old  lady  a  great  deal." 

"  Say,  I'll  bet  old  Haskers  was  sore  when  he 
forked  over  that  money,"  was  Ben's  comment. 
"  No  wonder  he's  been  looking  like  a  thunder- 
cloud lately." 

"  Yes,  and  he'd  let  out  on  us — if  he  dared," 
said  Phil.     "  But  he  doesn't  dare." 

"  Don't  be  too  sure  of  that,  Phil,"  said  Dave, 
seriously.  "  There  is  no  telling  what  he  will  do — 
later  on,  when  he  thinks  this  affair  has  blown 
over." 

"  Humph!  I  am  not  afraid  of  him,"  declared 
Phil,  recklessly. 

"  If  he  tries  any  of  his  games  we'll  expose  him," 
added  Ben. 

"  Better  go  slow,"  advised  Roger.  He,  too, 
felt  that  Job  Haskers  might  become  very  vindic- 
tive. 

Spring  was  now  at  hand,  and  a  week  later  came 
the  first  baseball  game  of  the  season.  It  was  a 
contest  with  Esmore  Academy  from  Daytonville 
and  held  on  the  Oak  Hall  grounds.  Quite  a 
crowd  was  present,  including  some  of  the  town 
folks.    Gus  Plum  was  in  the  pitcher's  box  for  the 


NAT  POOLE  WANTS  TO  KNOW        101 

Hall,  and  Sam  Day  was  on  first  base,  and  Chip 
Macklin  on  third. 

"  I  hope  we  win!  "  cried  Dave. 

"  I  hope  you  do,"  answered  Vera  Rockwell, 
who  was  present  with  some  other  girls.  "  But 
why  are  you  not  playing?  "  she  went  on. 

"  Not  this  term,"  said  our  hero,  with  a  smile, 
and  then  he  spoke  of  his  studies. 

"  I  suppose  it  is  noble  of  you  to  give  up  this 
way,"  she  said.    "  But — I'd  like  to  see  you  play." 

The  contest  proved  a  well-fought  one,  and  was 
won  by  Oak  Hall  by  a  score  of  eight  runs  to  five. 
At  the  conclusion  there  was  a  great  cheering  for 
the  victors. 

"This  means  bonfires  to-night!  "  cried  Roger, 
as  the  gathering  broke  up. 

"  Yes,  and  a  grand  good  time!  "  added  Buster 
Beggs. 


CHAPTER  XI 

BONFIRE  NIGHT  AT  THE  HALL 

It  was  certainly  a  night  long  to  be  remem- 
bered in  the  annals  of  Oak  Hall, — and  for  more 
reasons  than  one. 

At  the  start,  several  bonfires  were  lit  along  the 
bank  of  the  river,  and  around  these  the  students 
congregated,  to  dance  and  sing  songs,  and  "  cut 
up  "  generally.  None  of  the  teachers  were  pres- 
ent, and  it  was  given  out  that  the  lads  might 
enjoy  themselves  within  reasonable  bounds  until 
ten  o'clock. 

"  Let's  form  a  grand  march !  "  cried  Gus  Plum. 
"Every  man  with  a  torch!" 

"  Yes,  but  don't  set  anything  on  fire,"  cautioned 
Roger. 

"  Say,  that  puts  me  in  mind  of  a  story,"  came 
from  Shadow.  "  A  fellow  went  into  a  powder 
shop  to  buy  some  ammunition.  He  was  smoking  a 
pipe,  and  the  proprietor " 

"Whoop!  Hurrah  for  Shadow!  "  yelled  some- 
body from  the  rear,  and  the  next  instant  the 
story-teller  of  the  Hall  found  himself  up  on  a 

102 


BONFIRE  NIGHT  AT  THE  HALL       103 

pile  of  barrels  which  had  not  yet  been  set  on 
fire. 

"Now  then,  tell  your  yarns  to  everybody  I  " 
came  the  cry. 

"  Speak  loud,  Shadow!  " 

"  Give  us  all  the  details." 

"  Tell  us  the  story  about  the  old  man  and  the 
elephant." 

"  No,  give  us  that  about  the  old  maid  and  the 
mouse." 

"  Let  us  hear  about  the  fellow  who  was  ship- 
wrecked on  the  Rocky  Mountains." 

"  Or  about  how  the  fellow  who  couldn't  swim 
fell  into  a  flour  barrel." 

"  Say,  what  do  you  take  me  for?  "  roared 
Shadow.  "  I  don't  know  any  story  about  the 
Rocky  Mountains,  or  a  flour  barrel  either.  If  you 
want  to  hear " 

"Sure  we  do!" 

"  That's  the  very  yarn  we've  been  waiting 
for!" 

"  Say,  Shadow,  won't  you  please  tell  it  into  a 
phonograph,  so  I  can  grind  it  out  to  my  grand- 
father when  I  get  home?  " 

"  Is  that  the  story  that  starts  on  a  foggy  night, 
at  noon?  " 

"  No,  this  one  starts  on  a  dusty  day  in  the  mid- 
dle of  the  Atlantic." 

"  Say,  if  you  fellows  want  me  to  tell  a  story,  say 


104      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

so!  "  grumbled  Shadow.  "  Otherwise  I'm  going 
to  get  down." 

11  No  !  no !    Tell  your  best  yarn,  Shadow." 

"  All  right,  then.  Once  two  men  went  into  a 
shoe  store " 

"  Wow !    That's  fifty  years  old !  " 

"  I  heard  that  when  a  child,  at  my  grandson's 
knee." 

"Tell  us  something  about  smoke,  Shadow!" 

"  And  fire.  I  love  to  hear  about  a  fire.  It's 
so  warm  and " 

"  Hi !  let  me  get  down !  Do  you  want  to  burn 
me  up?"  yelled  the  story-teller  of  the  school, 
suddenly,  as,  chancing  to  glance  down,  he  saw 
that  the  barrels  were  on  fire.  "  Let  me  down,  I 
say!  "  And  he  made  a  leap  from  the  barrels 
into  the  midst  of  the  crowd. 

Shadow  landed  on  the  shoulders  of  Nat  Poole, 
and  both  went  down  and  rolled  over.  In  a  spirit 
of  play  some  of  the  students  near  by  covered  the 
rolling  pair  with  shavings  and  straw.  Shadow 
took  this  in  good  part  and  merely  laughed  as  he 
arose,  but  the  money-lender's  son  was  angry. 

"  Hi,  who  threw  those  dirty  shavings  all  over 
me?  "  he  bawled.     "  I  don't  like  it." 

"Don't  mind  a  little  bath  like  that,  Nat!" 
called  one  of  the  students. 

"  But  I  do  mind  it.  The  shavings  are  full  of 
dirt,  and  so  is  the  straw.    The  dirt  is  all  over  me." 


BONFIRE  NIGHT  AT  THE  HALL       105 

"  Never  mind,  you  can  have  a  free  bath,  Nat," 
said  another. 

"  I'll  lend  you  a  cake  of  soap,"  added  a  third. 

"  I  don't  want  any  of  your  soap !  "  growled  the 
money-lender's  son.  "  Say,  the  whole  crowd  of 
you  make  me  sick!  "  he  added,  and  walked  off,  in 
great  disgust. 

"  Phew!  but  he's  touchy,"  was  the  comment  of 
one  of  the  students.  "  I  guess  he  thinks  he's  bet- 
ter than  the  rest  of  us." 

"  Let's  give  him  another  dose,"  came  the  sug- 
gestion, from  the  rear  of  the  crowd. 

"Shavings?" 

"  Yes,  and  straw,  too.  Put  some  down  his 
neck!" 

"  Right  you  are!  " 

Fully  a  dozen  students  quickly  provided  them- 
selves with  shavings  and  straw,  both  far  from 
clean,  and  made  after  Nat,  who  was  walking 
up  the  river-front  in  the  direction  of  the  boat- 
house. 

Before  the  money-lender's  son  could  do  any- 
thing to  defend  himself,  he  found  himself  seized 
from  behind  and  hurled  to  the  ground. 

"Now  then,  give  it  to  him  good!"  cried  a 
voice,  and  in  a  twinkling  a  shower  of  shavings, 
straw,  and  dirt  descended  upon  poor  Nat,  cover- 
ing him  from  head  to  foot. 

"  Hi !  let  up !  "  spluttered  the  victim,  trying  to 


106      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

dodge  the  avalanche.  But  instead  of  heeding  his 
pleadings  the  other  students  proceeded  to  ram  a 
quantity  of  the  stuff  into  his  ears  and  down  his 
collar.  Nat  squirmed  and  yelled,  but  it  did  little 
good. 

"  Now  then,  you  are  initiated  into  the  Order 
of  Straw  and  Shavings !  "  cried  one  merry  student. 

"  Just  you  wait,  I'll  get  square,  see  if  I  don't," 
howled  Nat,  as  he  arose.  Then  he  commenced  to 
twist  his  neck,  to  free  himself  from  the  ticklish 
straw  and  shavings. 

"  Come  on  and  have  a  good  time,  old  sport!  " 
howled  one  of  his  tormentors;  and  then  off  the 
crowd  ran  in  the  direction  of  the  bonfires,  leaving 
Nat  more  disgusted  than  ever. 

"  I'll  fix  them,  just  wait  and  see  if  I  don't!  " 
stormed  the  money-lender's  son  to  himself,  and 
then  hurried  to  the  Hall,  to  clean  up  and  make 
himself  comfortable. 

In  the  meantime  the  march  around  the  campus 
had  begun,  each  student  carrying  a  torch  of  some 
kind.    There  was  a  great  singing. 

"  Be  careful  of  the  fire,"  warned  Mr.  Dale,  as 
he  came  out.  "  Doctor  Clay  says  you  must  be 
careful." 

"  We'll  take  care!  "  was  the  cry. 

The  marching  at  an  end,  some  of  the  boys  ran 
for  the  stables  and  presently  returned  with  Jack- 
son Lemond,  the  driver  of  the  school  carryall, 


BONFIRE  NIGHT  AT  THE  HALL       107 

commonly  called  Horsehair,  because  of  the  hairs 
which  clung  to  his  clothing. 

"  Come  on,  Horsehair,  join  us  in  having  a 
good  time." 

"  Give  us  a  speech,  Horsehair!  " 

"  Tell  us  all  you  know  about  the  Wars  of  the 
Roses." 

"  Or  how  Hannibal  crossed  the  Delaware  and 
defeated  the  Turks  at  the  Alamo." 

"  I  can't  make  no  speech,"  pleaded  the  carry- 
all driver.     "  Just  you  let  me  go,  please!  " 

"  If  you  can't  make  a  speech,  sing,"  suggested 
another.  "  Give  us  Yankee  Doodle  in  the  key 
of  J  minor." 

"  Or  that  beautiful  lullaby  entitled,  '  You 
Never  Miss  Your  Purse  Until  You  Have  to  Walk 
Home.'     Give  us  that  in  nine  flats,  will  you?  " 

"  I  tell  you  I  can't  make  a  speech  and  I  can't 
sing!  "  shouted  out  the  driver  for  the  school,  des- 
perately. 

"How  sad!  Can't  speechify  and  can't  sing! 
All  right,  then,  let  it  go,  and  give  us  a 
dance." 

"  That's  the  talk!  A  real  Japanese  jig  in  five- 
quarter  time." 

There  was  a  rush,  and  in  a  twinkling  poor 
Horsehair  was  boosted  to  the  top  of  a  big  packing- 
case,  that  had  been  hauled  to  the  spot  as  fuel 
for  one  of  the  bonfires. 


108      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

"  The  stage!  "  announced  one  of  the  students, 
with  a  wave  of  his  hand.  "  The  World-Renowned 
Horsehairsky  will  perform  his  celebrated  Dance 
of  the  Hop  Scotch.  Get  your  opera  glasses 
ready." 

"  What's  the  admission  fee?  " 

"  Two  pins  and  a  big  green  apple." 

"  I  can't  dance — I  ain't  never  danced  in  my 
life!"  pleaded  the  victim.  "You  let  me  go. 
I've  got  to  take  care  o'  my  hosses." 

While  he  was  speaking  Buster  Beggs  had  come 
up  behind  Horsehair  and  placed  something  at- 
tached to  a  dark  string  on  the  box,  between  the 
driver's  feet.  It  was  an  imitation  snake,  made  of 
rubber  and  colored  up  to  look  very  natural. 

"  Oh  my,  look  at  the  snake !  "  yelled  several, 
in  pretended  alarm. 

"Where?  where?"  yelled  Horsehair. 

"  There,  right  between  your  feet!  He's  going 
to  bite  you  on  the  leg!  " 

"Take  care,  that's  a  rattler  sure!" 

"  If  he  bites  you,  Horsehair,  you'll  be  a  dead 
man!  " 

"  Take  him  off !  Take  him  off !  "  bawled  the 
carryall  driver,  and  in  terror  he  made  a  wild  leap 
from  the  packing-box  and  landed  directly  on  the 
shoulders  of  two  of  the  students.  Then  he 
dropped  to  the  ground,  rolled  over,  got  up,  and 
ran  as  fast  as  his  legs  could  carry  him  in  the  direc- 


"  Where  ?  where  ?  "  yelled  Horsehair. — Page  108. 


BONFIRE  NIGHT  AT  THE  HALL       109 

tion  of  the  stables.  A  wild  laugh  followed  him, 
but  to  this  he  paid  no  attention. 

■"  Well,  we  are  certainly  having  a  night  of  it," 
remarked  Dave,  after  the  fun  had  quieted  down 
for  a  moment.    He  spoke  to  Roger. 

"  Where  is  Phil?  "  asked  the  senator's  son. 

"  Went  off  with  Ben,  I  think." 

"Where  to?" 

"  I  don't  know." 

"  It's  queer  how  much  they  keep  together 
lately;  isn't  it?  "  continued  Roger. 

"  Oh,  I  don't  know.  Of  course  that  affair 
with  Haskers  may  have  something  to  do  with  it," 
answered  our  hero,  slowly. 

"  I  wish  Haskers  would  leave  this  school, 
Dave." 

"  Oh,  it  won't  make  much  difference  to  us,  if 
we  graduate,  whether  he  stays  or  not." 

"  I  know  that.  But,  somehow,  I  don't  think 
he  is  a  good  man  to  have  here,  even  if  he  is  a 
learned  instructor.  He  never  enters  into  the 
school  spirit,  as  Mr.  Dale  does." 

"  Well,  we  can't  all  be  alike." 

"  Would  you  keep  him,  if  you  were  in  Doctor 
Clay's  shoes?  " 

"  I  hardly  think  so.  Certainly  not  if  I  could 
find  another  teacher  equally  good." 

The  boys  walked  on  until  they  found  them- 
selves   at   the    last   bonfire    of    the    line,    close 


no   DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

to  where  the  school  grounds  came  to  an  end. 
Here  was  a  hedge,  and  beyond  were  the  woods 
reaching  up  from  the  river. 

"  Nobody  down  by  this  bonfire,"  remarked 
Dave.  "  Say,  this  is  careless  work,"  he  added. 
"  The  wind  might  shift  and  set  the  woods  on 
fire." 

"  I  didn't  think  they'd  start  a  fire  so  far  from 
the  others,"  answered  his  chum. 

"  Let  us  kick  it  into  the  water,"  suggested  our 
hero,  and  this  they  started  to  do,  when,  unexpect- 
edly, a  voice  hailed  them,  and  they  saw  a  student 
sitting  in  a  tree  that  grew  in  the  hedge  which 
separated  the  campus  from  the  woods. 

"  Let  that  fire  alone !  "  the  youth  called,  angrily. 

"  Why,  it's  Nat  Poole !  "  exclaimed  Roger,  in 
a  low  voice.  "  Whatever  is  he  doing  in  that 
tree?" 

"  I  am  sure  I  don't  know,"  returned  Dave. 

"Is  he  alone?" 

"  He  seems  to  be." 

"  Do  you  hear  what  I  say?  "  went  on  the 
money-lender's  son.    "  Leave  that  fire  alone." 

"  Did  you  build  it?  "  asked  Dave. 

"  I  did,  and  I  want  you  to  leave  it  alone." 

"  All  right,  Nat,  if  you  say  so,"  answered 
Roger.  "  We  thought  it  had  been  abandoned  and 
that  it  might  set  fire  to  the  woods." 

To  this  Nat  Poole  did  not  reply.     Plainly  he 


BONFIRE  NIGHT  AT  THE  HALL       in 

was  annoyed  at  being  discovered  in  his  present 
position.  Dave  and  Roger  looked  around,  to  see 
if  anybody  else  was  in  the  vicinity,  and  then, 
turning,  walked  in  the  direction  of  the  other  bon- 
fires. 

"  What  do  you  make  of  that,  Dave?  "  asked 
the  senator's  son,  presently. 

"  It  looked  to  me  as  if  Nat  was  waiting  or 
watching  for  somebody,  Roger." 

"  So  it  did.    The  question  is,  Who  was  it?  " 

"  I  don't  know.  But  I've  got  something  of  an 
idea." 

"  Some  of  the  students?  " 

11  No.     That  wild  man." 


CHAPTER  XII 

PLANS  FOR  A  SPREAD 

"That  wild  man?"  exclaimed  the  senator's 
son,  stopping  short  to  stare  at  Dave. 

"  Yes." 

"  How  do  you  make  that  out?  " 

"  Because  I  think  Nat  is  interested  in  the  fel- 
low, although  just  how  I  won't  pretend  to  say. 
But  you'll  remember  how  excited  he  got  when  he 
found  out  that  the  wild  man  called  himself  the 
King  of  Sumatra." 

"Oh,  I  see.  You  think  he  knows  the  fellow 
and  thought  that  the  bonfire  might  attract  him  to 
the  place." 

"  Yes.  I've  heard  it  said  that  crazy  folks  were 
sometimes  attracted  by  the  sight  of  fire.  Maybe 
Nat  has  heard  the  same  and  wants  to  see  if  it  will 
work  in  the  case  of  this  man." 

"Shall  we  go  back  and  see  what  happens?" 
suggested  Roger. 

Dave  mused  for  a  moment. 

"  Would  it  be  just  right  to  play  the  spy, 
Roger?" 

112 


PLANS  FOR  A  SPREAD  113 

"  Well,  this  isn't  playing  the  spy  in  the  ordi- 
nary sense  of  the  term,  Dave.  That  wild  man 
ought  to  be  locked  up." 

"  But  it  may  not  be  the  wild  man  he  is  looking 
for." 

"  Oh,  let  us  go  back  a  little  while,  anyway," 
urged  the  senator's  son. 

They  retraced  their  steps  until  within  fifty  feet 
of  the  bonfire  and  then  walked  to  the  shelter  of 
the  hedge.  They  thought  they  had  not  been  seen, 
but  they  were  mistaken. 

"  Humph !  so  you  think  you  are  going  to  spy 
on  me,  after  all!  "  cried  a  voice,  and  Nat  Poole 
came  towards  them,  with  a  deep  frown  on  his 
face. 

"  It's  rather  queer  you  are  in  the  tree,"  an- 
swered Roger,  somewhat  sharply. 

"It's  my  affair,  not  yours,  Roger  Morr!" 
roared  the  money-lender's  son.  Then,  without 
another  word,  he  walked  to  the  bonfire,  kicked 
the  blazing  sticks  into  the  river,  and  strode  off 
in  the  direction  of  the  Hall. 

"  He's  good  and  mad,"  was  Roger's  comment. 

"  And  we  didn't  learn  anything,  after  all," 
added  our  hero. 

Dave  and  his  chum  rejoined  the  merry  throng 
at  the  other  bonfires.  But  the  celebration  in 
honor  of  the  baseball  victory  was  practically  at 
an  end,  and  a  little  later  the  students  retired,  to 


ii4      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

skylark  a  little  in  the  dormitories,  and  then  settle 
down  for  the  night. 

A  week  passed,  and  Dave  stuck  to  his  studies 
as  persistently  as  ever.  During  that  time  he  sent 
off  several  letters,  and  received  a  number  in  re- 
turn, including  one  from  Jessie,  which  he  treas- 
ured very  highly  and  which  he  did  not  show  to  his 
chums. 

u  Here  is  news  of  Link  Merwell,"  said  Luke 
Watson,  one  day,  as  he  came  along  with  a  letter. 
"  It's  from  a  friend  of  mine  who  knows  Merwell. 
He  says  he  saw  Link  in  Quebec,  Canada,  at  one 
of  the  little  French  hotels  in  the  lower  town." 

"What  was  Merwell  doing?"  questioned 
Dave,  with  interest. 

"  Nothing  much,  so  my  friend  writes.  He  says 
Link  was  dressed  in  a  blue  suit  and  wore  blue 
glasses,  and  he  thought  his  hair  was  dyed." 

"  Evidently  doing  what  he  could  to  disguise 
himself,"  was  Phil's  comment. 

"  My  friend  writes  that  he  saw  Merwell  only 
one  evening.  The  next  day  he  was  missing.  He 
made  inquiries  and  says  he  was  at  the  hotel  under 
the  name  of  V.  A.  Smith,  of  Albany,  New  York." 

"  He  does  not  dare  to  travel  around  under  his 
own  name,"  remarked  Shadow.  "  Say,  that  puts 
me  in  mind  of  a  story,"  he  went  on,  brightening 
up.  "  Once  a  chap  changed  his  name,  be- 
cause  " 


PLANS  FOR  A  SPREAD  115 

"  Say,  cut  it  out,"  interrupted  Phil.  "  We  want 
to  hear  about  Merwell." 

"  There  isn't  any  more  to  tell,"  said  Luke. 
"  My  friend  tried  to  find  out  where  he  had  gone 
but  couldn't." 

"  He  must  be  having  a  lonely  time  of  it — try- 
ing to  keep  out  of  the  hands  of  the  law,"  mur- 
mured Dave. 

"  And  maybe  he  hasn't  much  money,"  said 
Buster.  "  His  father  may  have  shut  down  on 
him." 

Gus  Plum  listened  to  all  this  conversation  with- 
out saying  a  word.  But  down  in  his  heart  the 
former  bully  of  Oak  Hall  was  glad  that  he  had 
cut  away  from  Merwell  and  Jasniff,  and  turned 
over  a  new  leaf,  and  he  resolved  then  and  there 
that,  come  what  might,  he  would  never  again  turn 
aside  from  the  path  of  right  and  honor. 

"  Say,  why  don't  you  listen  to  my  story? " 
pleaded  Shadow,  and  then  related  a  somewhat 
rambling  tale  of  a  man  who  had  changed  his 
name  and,  later  on,  lost  some  property  because 
of  it. 

Another  day  slipped  by  and  it  was  one  of  partic- 
ular interest  to  Dave  and  Roger,  for  in  the  morn- 
ing they  made  up  the  last  of  the  back  lessons 
imposed  upon  them  by  Job  Haskers.  They  had 
done  exceedingly  well,  but  the  harsh  teacher  gave 
them  little  credit.     Phil  and  Ben  had  still  three 


n6   DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

days'  work,  but  Professor  Haskers  said  nothing 
of  this. 

"  He  doesn't  dare,"  declared  the  shipowner's 
son. 

"That's  right,"  chuckled  Ben.  "We  could 
give  him  a  good  black  eye  before  this  whole 
school  if  we  wanted  to." 

Dave  had  already  finished  up  the  back  lessons 
for  the  other  teachers,  so  he  was  now  free  to 
spend  his  time  on  what  was  ahead  of  him.  He 
was  as  enthusiastic  as  ever  to  make  a  record  for 
himself,  and  pitched  in  with  a  will,  and  his  enthu- 
siasm was  caught  by  Roger,  who  also  resolved  to 
do  his  best. 

"  Whoop !  hurrah !  What  do  you  think  of 
this?  "  came  from  Phil,  late  one  afternoon,  after 
the  mail  had  been  distributed.  "  Somebody  hold 
me  down!  I  guess  I'm  going  to  fly!  Or  maybe 
I'm  only  dreaming !  "  And  he  began  to  caper 
around  gayly. 

"What  is  it  all  about,  Phil?"  asked  Dave. 
"  Hit  your  funny-bone?  " 

"Money,  boys,  money!  That's  what  it  is 
about,"  replied  the  shipowner's  son.  "  I've  got 
five  thousand  dollars,  all  my  own !  " 

"Five  thousand  dollars!"  gasped  Buster. 

"All  your  own?"  queried  Gus  Plum. 

"  Wrhere  did  you  get  it?"  asked  another. 

"  Why,  it's  this  way,"  answered  Phil,  when  he 


PLANS  FOR  A  SPREAD  117 

could  calm  down  a  little.  "  About  two  years  ago 
a  great-uncle  of  mine  died,  leaving  considerable 
money.  He  was  interested  in  various  enterprises 
and  his  death  brought  on  legal  complications  and 
some  litigation.  He  left  his  money  to  a  lot  of 
heirs,  including  myself.  My  father  and  I  never 
thought  we'd  get  anything — thought  the  lawyers 
and  courts  would  swallow  it  all.  But  now  it  seems 
that  it  has  been  settled,  and  yours  truly  gets  five 
thousand  dollars  in  cash." 

"  When  do  you  get  it,  Phil,  right  away?  "  asked 
Buster. 

"  Well, — er — I,  of  course,  don't  get  it  until  I 
am  of  age.     It's  to  go  in  the  bank." 

"Oh!" 

"  Won't  you  get  any  of  it  until  then?  "  asked 
Shadow.  "  Your  dad  might  let  you  have  a  little, 
just  to  celebrate " 

"  That's  just  it — just  what  he  has  done!  "  cried 
Phil.  "  I've  got But  wait,"  cried  the  ship- 
owner's son,  interrupting  himself.  "  I'll  plan  this 
thing  out.  You  shall  all  be  my  guests  later  on," 
he  added,  mysteriously. 

"Will  you  give  a  spread?"  asked  Chip 
Macklin. 

"  Don't  ask  questions,  only  wait,"  returned 
Phil.  And  that  was  all  he  would  say  on  the  point, 
although  he  talked  freely  about  his  inheritance. 

The  next  morning  Phil  and  Ben  were  seen  in 


n8   DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

earnest  conversation,  and  that  afternoon  the  two 
boys  left  the  school  as  soon  as  they  could  get 
away,  bound  on  an  errand  to  Oakdale. 

"  We  ought  to  get  a  dandy  spread  for  a  dollar 
or  a  dollar  and  a  half  a  head,"  said  Phil,  as  they 
hurried  along.  "  And  twelve  at  a  dollar  and  a 
half  will  be  only  eighteen  dollars." 

"  The  music  will  cost  something,"  said  Ben. 

"  Yes,  I'm  counting  on  two  pieces,  a  harp  and 
a  violin,  for  ten  dollars.  That's  the  price  Pro- 
fessor Smuller  charges." 

The  boys  were  bound  for  the  Oakdale  Union 
House,  a  new  hotel  which  had  just  been  opened 
by  a  man  named  Jason  Sparr.  It  was  a  nice 
resort,  without  a  bar,  and  catered  to  the  better 
class  of  people,  including  the  students  at  Oak 
Hall  and  at  the  Military  Academy. 

The  boys  found  the  hotel  proprietor  glad  to 
see  them,  and  willing  to  set  any  kind  of  a  spread 
that  they  were  able  to  pay  for.  Trade  was  not 
yet  brisk,  and  Jason  Sparr  said  he  would  do  his 
best  to  serve  them.  He  was  a  smooth,  oily  man, 
and  a  fellow  who  wanted  all  that  was  coming  to 
him. 

"  I  can  set  you  an  elegant  table  for  eighteen 
dollars  for  twelve,"  said  he.  "  I'll  give  you  oys- 
ters, fish,  two  kinds  of  meat,  several  vegetables, 
salad,  ice-cream,  coffee,  and  also  nuts,  cake,  olives, 
celery,  and  other  fixings." 


PLANS  FOR  A  SPREAD  119 

"  That's  the  talk!  "  cried  Phil,  enthusiastically. 
"  Just  make  a  nice  spread  of  it,  and  you  can  have 
all  our  trade  in  the  future." 

"  You'll  be  well  pleased,"  answered  Jason 
Sparr. 

"  Can  we  have  a  private  dining-room?  " 

"  To  be  sure — the  blue  room  over  yonder,"  and 
the  hotel  man  showed  the  boys  the  apartment. 

"  I  want  some  flowers,  too,"  said  Phil.  "  You 
can  put  two  dollars'  worth  of  roses  on  the 
table." 

"  Very  well — that  will  make  an  even  twenty 
dollars." 

"  When  do  you  want  me  to  pay?  " 

"  Such  spreads  are  usually  paid  for  in  ad- 
vance," answered  Jason  Sparr,  shrewdly.  He  did 
not  intend  to  take  any  chances  with  schoolboys. 

"  All  right,  here  is  your  money,"  answered  the 
shipowner's  son,  and  brought  forth  one  of  the 
two  crisp  twenty-dollar  bills  his  father  had  mailed 
to  him,  with  the  good  news  of  his  fortune. 

"  Tell  him  about  the  music,"  suggested  Ben. 

"  Oh,  yes,  I  thought  I'd  have  Professor 
Smuller  furnish  some  music — harp   and  violin." 

"  Fine !  They  can  sit  in  the  alcove,  and  we'll 
put  some  of  our  palms  around  them,"  returned 
Jason  Sparr. 

"  Remember,  this  is  for  next  Saturday  night, 
seven  o'clock  sharp,"  said  Phil. 


iao      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

"  I've  got  it  down,"  returned  the  hotel  pro- 
prietor, as  he  wrote  in  his  book. 

"  And  don't  say  anything  to  anybody  about  it. 
I  want  to  surprise  my  friends." 

"  Very  well,  mum's  the  word,"  and  the  hotel 
man  looked  very  wise  and  knowing. 

Leaving  the  place,  Phil  and  Ben  sought  out  the 
home  of  Professor  Smuller,  a  violinist,  who,  with 
a  friend  who  played  the  harp,  often  furnished 
music  for  dances  and  other  occasions. 

"  Yes,  yes,  I  can  furnish  music,"  said  the 
violinist.  "  Just  tell  me  what  you  want."  Busi- 
ness was  slow  and  he  was  glad  to  get  any  sort  of 
an  engagement. 

The  matter  was  explained,  and  the  professor 
promised  to  be  on  hand  and  bring  the  harpist 
with  him.  He  said  he  could  play  anything  the 
students  desired,  including  the  well-known  school 
songs.  He  would  fill  the  engagement  for  the  boys 
for  eight  dollars,  although  his  regular  price  was 
ten.     But  he  would  have  to  have  cash  in  advance. 

Again  Phil  paid  out  his  money,  and  then,  the 
business  concluded,  he  and  Ben  left  the  professor's 
home  and  hurried  along  the  road  leading  to  Oak 
Hall. 

"  Have  you  made  up  your  list  yet?  "  asked 
Ben,  when  nearing  the  school. 

"  Not  quite.  I'll  have  Dave  and  Roger  and 
Shadow  and  Buster,  of  course.    I'll  have  to  leave 


PLANS  FOR  A  SPREAD  121 

out  some  fellows,  but  that  can't  be  helped.  I 
can't  afford  a  spread  for  the  whole  school." 

"  Of  course  you  can't." 

"  I  think  I'll  have  Luke  and  Sam,  and  maybe 
Gus  and  Chip." 

As  the  boys  drew  closer  to  the  school  Ben  had 
to  stop  to  fix  his  shoe.  Both  sat  down  on  some 
rocks,  at  a  turn  in  the  road.  They  were  about 
to  go  on  again  when  somebody  made  the  turn 
of  the  road,  coming  from  the  town.  It  was  Nat 
Poole. 

"  Hello !  you  been  to  town?  "  cried  Ben,  good- 
naturedly. 

"  Yes,"  answered  the  money-lender's  son. 
"Haven't  I  a  right  to  go  if  I  want  to?"  he 
added,  and  then  hurried  on  ahead  of  them. 

"  Rather  peppery,"  mused  Ben.  "  Say,  Phil, 
there  is  one  fellow  you  won't  invite,  and  I  know 
it." 

"  Right  you  are,  Ben,"  was  the  ready  answer. 
"  All  I  ask  of  Nat  Poole  is,  that  he  leave  me 
alone." 

But  Nat  was  not  to  leave  Phil  alone,  as  events 
were  quickly  to  prove. 


CHAPTER  XIII 

THE  CABIN  ON  THE  ISLAND 

"  Dave,  come  on  out  for  a  row.  You  haven't 
been  on  the  river  this  year." 

It  was  Gus  Plum  who  spoke.  He  was  out  in 
one  of  the  craft  belonging  to  Oak  Hall,  and  hailed 
our  hero  as  the  latter  was  strolling  along  the 
river-bank. 

"All  right,  Gus!"  Dave  cried,  cheerily.  "I 
don't  know  but  that  a  try  at  the  oars  will  do  me 
good,  after  the  hard  studying  I've  been  doing." 

"  You  are  bound  to  get  a  high-water  mark  this 
term,  aren't  you?"  went  on  Gus  Plum,  as  he 
brought  the  rowboat  up  to  the  dock,  so  that  Dave 
might  get  in. 

"  I'd  like  to  graduate  with  honor,  yes." 

"  What  are  you  going  to  do  after  you  leave 
here,  Dave?"  went  on  the  big  youth,  as  the 
two  rowed  up  the  river. 

"  I  don't  know  yet.  Have  you  made  up  your 
mind?" 

"  Oh,  I  think  I'll  go  into  business,  but  I  am  not 
sure. 


THE  CABIN  ON  THE  ISLAND  123 

"  You  won't  try  for  college?  " 

"  No.  You  see,  I  don't  make  much  of  a  fist  at 
learning,  so  what's  the  use?  But  I  love  business — 
buying  and  selling  things." 

The  two  boys  continued  at  the  oars  until  the 
vicinity  of  Oak  Hall  was  left  far  behind. 

"  If  we  only  had  a  power-boat  we  might  run. 
up  to  Squirrel  Island,"  remarked  Gus. 

"  Perhaps  Nat  Poole  will  lend  you  his  motor- 
boat,"  suggested  our  hero,  with  a  little  grin. 

"  Humph!  I'd  not  ask  him,"  returned  the  big 
youth,  promptly.  "  I  am  done  with  Nat  Poole. 
I  want  to  stick  to  my  new  friends."  And  the 
former  bully  of  the  school  fairly  beamed  on 
Dave,  who  had  done  so  much  to  make  him  re- 
form. 

"  Have  you  seen  the  motor-boat  this  season,, 
Gus?" 

Yes,  Nat  got  it  out  two  days  ago.     I  think 
he  is  on  the  river  now." 

The  boys  rowed  on,  until  they  came  to  a  bend 
where  there  was  something  of  a  cove.  As  they 
rounded  the  point  they  heard  the  steady  put-put! 
of  a  gasoline  engine  not  far  off. 

"There  is  Nat's  craft  now!  "  cried  our  hero, 
and  pointed  ahead. 

"  He's  all  alone,"  was  Plum's  comment.  "  He 
can't  have  many  friends  these  days,  or  he'd  have 
some  of  them  alone." 


124      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

"  I'd  hate  to  be  without  friends,  Gus,  should- 
n't you?  " 

"Yes,  indeed!  But  it's  Nat's  own  fault.  If 
he'd  only  drop  his  important  airs  and  be  more 
sociable,  he'd  get  along  all  right." 

On  and  on  rowed  the  two  students.  It  was 
a  clear,  balmy  day,  and  they  hated  to  return  to 
the  school  until  it  was  absolutely  necessary. 

"  Let  us  row  around  Smith  Island,"  suggested 
our  hero,  mentioning  a  small  place  in  the  middle 
of  the  stream,  so  named  after  a  farmer  who 
owned  it.  It  was  a  rocky  and  somewhat  barren 
spot,  and  seldom  visited  by  anybody  but  fisher- 
men. 

"  All  right,  but  we  want  to  beware  of  the 
rocks,"  cautioned  the  big  youth. 

The  rowboat  was  headed  up  the  stream,  and 
soon  they  came  in  sight  of  the  island.  On  one 
side  were  a  number  of  bushes,  overhanging  the 
river. 

"  Hello!  look  there!  "  cried  Dave,  a  few  min- 
utes later,  and  pointed  to  the  bushes. 

"What  do  you  see?  " 

"  A  motor-boat.     I  think  it  is  Nat  Poole's." 

"  Is  that  so?  What  brought  him  here?  "  ques- 
tioned Gus,  with  interest. 

"  I  am  sure  I  don't  know.  But  it's  his  boat, 
I  am  sure  of  that,"  went  on  Dave,  after  another 
look  at  the  craft. 


THE  CABIN  ON  THE  ISLAND  125 

"  See  anything  of  Nat?  " 

"  No,  the  boat  is  empty." 

"  Let  us  row  in  a  little  closer  and  see  what  he 
is  doing,"  suggested  Gus. 

"  He'll  say  we  were  spying  on  him." 

"  Humph !  Haven't  we  as  much  right  as  he 
has  to  visit  the  island?  " 

"  Of  course." 

"  Then  what  is  the  use  of  keeping  away?  He 
may  be  waiting  to  play  some  trick,  or  something 
like  that." 

"  Oh,  I  think  not,  Gus.  Probably  he  just 
visited  the  island  out  of  curiosity.  But  I'll  go  in 
if  you  say  so." 

Slowly,  so  as  to  avoid  the  many  rocks  in  that 
vicinity,  the  two  students  brought  the  rowboat 
close  up  to  the  motor-craft.  They  looked  into  the 
bushes  and  along  the  rocks  beyond,  but  saw  noth- 
ing of  Nat. 

"  Shall  we  call  to  him?  "  asked  Gus. 

"  What  for?    I  don't  want  to  see  him." 

"  Neither  do  I.  His  boat  is  tied  good  and 
fast.  He  must  expect  to  stay  on  the  island  quite 
a  while." 

The  two  boys  rowed  on,  past  the  motor-boat. 
Then,  as  they  turned  a  point  of  rocks,  Dave 
gave  a   start. 

"Well,  of  all  things!" 

"What  is  it,  Dave?" 


126      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

"  Look  yonder — in  between  those  bushes!  " 

"  Why,  it's  a  rowboat." 

"  Exactly,  Gus,  and  do  you  see  how  it  is  painted, 
drab  with  blue  stripes?  " 

"  Of  course — a  pretty  ugly  boat,  I  think." 

"  Gus,  that  is  the  very  rowboat  used  by  that 
wild  man — the  one  he  was  in  when  he  got  away 
from  us  that  day!  " 

"  Do  you  really  mean  it?  "  gasped  the  big  boy, 
staring  hard  at  the  craft. 

"  I  certainly  do — I'd  know  that  boat  in  a  hun- 
dred.    I  never  saw  another  just  like  it." 

"  If  that's  the  case,  maybe  the  wild  man  is  on 
the  island!  " 

"  Just  what  I  was  thinking,"  answered  Dave. 

"  And  I  was  thinking,  too,  that "    He  stopped 

short. 

"What?" 

"  Don't  you  remember  how  Nat  was  so  anxious 
to  know  all  about  the  wild  man?  And  how  upset 
he  seemed  to  be  when  he  heard  that  the  fellow 
called  himself  the  King  of  Sumatra?" 

"  Yes,  I  remember  that.  Do  you  think  he 
came  here  to  find  the  man?"  demanded  Gus, 
quickly. 

"  It  looks  so  to  me." 

"  My  gracious,  Dave,  I  think  you  are  right! 
Say,  there  is  something  mysterious  about  all 
this !  "  cried  Gus. 


THE  CABIN  ON  THE  ISLAND  127 

"  Exactly." 

"  Let  us  go  ashore  by  all  means  and  see  what 
Nat  is  up  to,"  urged  the  big  youth. 

Dave  was  more  than  willing,  now  that  he  had 
discovered  the  rowboat  used  by  the  wild  man. 
Perhaps  this  island  was  the  home  of  that  mysteri- 
ous individual.  If  so,  what  was  the  money- 
lender's son  doing  there?  Had  he  business  with 
the  strange  creature? 

"  Maybe  we'd  better  not  make  any  noise,"  sug- 
gested Gus,  as  the  boat  was  turned  in  to  a  con- 
venient landing-place.  To  this  Dave  did  not 
reply,  but  they  landed  as  silently  as  possible. 
Then  the  rowboat  was  hauled  up  out  of  sight 
between  the  bushes. 

From  the  craft  used  by  the  wild  man  a  rude 
path  ran  up  from  the  shore  to  the  rocks  beyond. 
A  short  distance  from  the  shore  the  boys  saw  the 
marks  of  a  wet  foot,  coming  from  the  direction 
where  lay  the  motor-boat. 

"  That  was  made  by  Nat — he  got  his  left  foot 
wet,"  said  Gus. 

"  I  think  so  myself,"  answered  our  hero. 

They  followed  the  marks  left  by  the  wet  foot 
over  the  rocks.  They  headed  for  the  upper  end 
of  the  island,  where  there  was  a  small  grove  of 
straggly  cedar  trees.  Here  the  marks  faded 
away  completely. 

"  Well,  we  know  he  came  this  way,  anyhow," 


128      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

remarked  Gus.  "  He  can't  be  very  far  off,  for 
the  island  isn't  very  big." 

"I  see  a  rude  log  cabin!"  exclaimed  Dave, 
and  pointed  through  the  cedars.  "  Maybe  that  is 
where  the  wild  man  lives." 

"  If  it  is,  we  want  to  go  slow,  Dave.  He  may 
attack  us." 

"  But  what  of  Nat,  if  he  is  there?  " 

"  He  may  know  the  man  and  have  some  influ- 
ence over  him." 

"  I  hardly  think  anybody  could  have  any  influ- 
ence over  that  man.  He  is  as  crazy  as  can  be, 
and  not  to  be  trusted." 

The  two  youths  approached  the  old  log  cabin 
slowly,  keeping  as  much  as  possible  in  the  shelter 
of  the  trees.  Nobody  was  in  sight,  nor  did  any 
sound  reach  their  ears. 

Presently  the  students  found  themselves  within 
fifty  feet  of  the  cabin,  the  door  of  which  stood 
half  open.     Each  looked  at  the  other. 

"  I'm  going  ahead,"  said  Dave,  resolutely.  He 
and  his  companion  had  provided  themselves  with 
sticks,  and  Gus  had  also  picked  up  two  stones. 

"Oh!  oh!  oh!"  came  of  a  sudden,  to  their 
startled  ears.     "  Oh  dear  me !  " 

"It's  Nat!"  ejaculated  Dave.  "Something 
has  happened  to  him!" 

"  Maybe  the  wild  man  attacked  him,"  added 
Gus. 


THE  CABIN  ON  THE  ISLAND  129 

"  We'll  soon  see,"  cried  Dave,  and  started  for- 
ward on  a  run. 

Soon  our  hero  was  at  the  door  of  the  cabin, 
which  he  pushed  wide  open.  Inside  all  was  dark, 
for  it  was  growing  late,  and  the  rude  structure 
boasted  of  but  one  small  window,  stuffed  with 
cedar  boughs  to  keep  out  the  wind. 

"  Nat,  where  are  you  ?  "  cried  Dave,  as  his  eyes 
sought  to  pierce  the  semi-darkness. 

"  Who — who  is  that  calling  me?  "  came,  in  sur- 
prise, from  the  center  of  the  cabin. 

"  It  is  I — Dave  Porter!  Where  are  you,  and 
what  happened?    Where  is  the  wild  man?  " 

"  Oh,  I'm  caught  fast — in  a  trap !  "  groaned  the 
money-lender's  son.  "Oh,  help  me  out!  My 
ankle  is  almost  broken !  " 

"  But  the  wild  man — ?  "  queried  Gus,  who  was 
close  behind  our  hero. 

"  I — I  don't  know  where  he  is,"  gasped  Nat. 
"  Oh,  say,  won't  you  please  help  me?  My  ankle 
is  fast  in  a  trap  !    Oh,  how  it  hurts !  " 

"  Wasn't  the  wild  man  here?  "  asked  Dave,  as 
he  got  out  his  match-box  to  strike  a  light. 

"  No — at  least,  I  haven't  seen  him." 

Dave  soon  had  a  match  lit,  and  with  it  set 
fire  to  a  cedar  bough  placed  in  the  rude  fireplace 
of  the  cabin.  By  the  glare  of  this  light  he  and 
Gus  looked  around  them  and  at  their  fellow- 
student. 


130      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

The  cabin  was  unfurnished  excepting  for  a  rude 
bench  and  a  board  placed  on  some  piles  of  stones 
for  a  table.  In  the  fireplace  were  a  kettle  and  a 
frying-pan,  and  on  the  table  the  remains  of  a 
scanty  meal  of  crackers,  eggs,  and  apples.  A  tin 
pail,  half  filled  with  water,  was  also  handy. 

When  Dave  and  Gus  turned  their  attention  to 
Nat  Poole  they  had  to  stare  in  wonder.  Nat  sat 
on  the  floor,  nursing  a  bruised  ankle  that  was 
caught  fast  between  the  jaws  of  an  old-fashioned 
steel  animal-trap.  The  trap  was  chained  to  the 
floor,  and  the  release  chain  ran  to  a  corner  of 
the  fireplace,  several  feet  beyond  the  sufferer's 
reach. 

"However  did  this  happen?"  asked  Gus,  al- 
though he  and  our  hero  could  easily  guess  the 
answer  to  the  question. 

"  Help  me  get  loose  first,"  groaned  poor  Nat. 
"  This  thing  is  sawing  down  to  the  bone." 

Dave  saw  the  release  chain,  which  was  held 
firm  by  a  hook.  Stepping  over,  he  unhooked 
it,  and  then  it  was  an  easy  matter  to  pry  the  jaws 
of  the  steel-trap  apart.  As  soon  as  this  was  done, 
Nat  rose  slowly  to  his  feet,  making  a  wry  face 
as  he  did  so. 

"I'll  be  lame  for  life— I  know  I  will!"  he 
groaned.     "  Oh  dear,  how  it  hurts !  " 

"  You  take  care  that  you  don't  get  blood- 
poisoning  from  it,"  warned  Gus.     "  When  you 


THE  CABIN  ON  THE  ISLAND  131 

get  home  wash  it  well,  and  put  some  peroxide 
of  hydrogen,  or  something  like  that  on  it." 

"  Blood-poisoning  I  Oh  dear!"  and  Nat  gave 
another  groan. 

"  Shall  we  help  you  back  to  your  boat?  "  asked 
Dave. 

11  If  you  will." 

"Where  is  the  wild  man?"  questioned  Gus, 
looking  around. 

"  I  don't  know,  and  I  don't  care — just  now," 
answered  Nat  Poole. 


CHAPTER  XIV 

THE  BANDANNA  HANDKERCHIEF 

Nat  Poole  could  hardly  walk  on  the  injured 
leg,  so  Dave  and  Gus  supported  him  as  the  three 
left  the  rude  cabin  and  headed  for  the  shore  of  the 
island. 

"  Do  you  know  where  the  wild  man  is?  "  re- 
peated Gus,  who  had  not  been  satisfied  by  the 
reply  given  to  the  question  before. 

"  I  do  not,"  snapped  the  money-lender's  son, 
with  a  touch  of  his  former  tartness.  "  I  haven't 
seen  him." 

"  But  you  know  that  cabin  is  where  he  lives," 
put  in  our  hero. 

"  I  thought  so — but  I  wasn't  sure  of  it." 

"  Did  you  see  him  come  ashore,  Nat?  " 

"  No — that  is,  not  to-day.  I  saw  him  land  here 
yesterday." 

"  And  that  is  what  brought  you  here  to-day?  " 
remarked  Gus. 

"  Yes,  if  you  must  know,"  was  the  somewhat 
cold  answer. 

"  See  here,  Nat,  do  you  know  this  wild  man?  " 
asked  Dave,  abruptly. 

132 


THE  BANDANNA  HANDKERCHIEF      133 

"  Me?  Know  him?  How  should  I  know 
him?  "  demanded  the  money-lender's  son,  but  his 
apparent  astonishment  did  not,  somehow,  ring 
nor  look  true. 

"  That  is  what  I  wanted  to  find  out." 

"  I  don't  know  him — at  least,  I  don't  think  I 
do.  I've  never  seen  him  close  enough  to  make 
sure.  Maybe  he's  some  fellow  who  belongs 
around  here.  I  wanted  to  find  out  about  him — 
just  as  everybody  else  wants  to  find  out,  that's  all." 

"  Want  to  have  him  caught  and  placed  in  an 
asylum?  "  asked  Gus. 

"  It's  not  my  business  to  place  him  anywhere," 
cried  Nat,  hastily.  "  For  all  we  know,  he  may 
be  harmless." 

"  Not  when  he  stops  young  ladies  on  the  road 
and  catches  folks  in  steel-traps,"  answered  our 
hero,  with  a  faint  smile. 

"  Well,  that's  right,  too,"  grumbled  the  money- 
lender's son.  "  Maybe  he  ought  to  be  in  an 
asylum." 

"  I  think  he  is  on  this  island  now,"  went  on 
Dave.     "  His   rowboat  is  here,   anyway." 

"  Say,  I'll  tell  you  what  we  can  do  !  "  cried  Gus. 
"  Take  his  boat  with  us !  Then  he  can't  get 
away,  and  we  can  send  the  authorities  over  here 
to  get  him." 

"  That's  an  idea,  Gus !  "  cried  Dave.  "  We'll 
do  it." 


134      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

"  Would  that  be  fair  to  the  man?  "  asked  Nat. 
"  He — er — he  might  starve  to  death — or  try  to 
swim  to  shore  and  get  drowned." 

"  He  can't  starve  to  death  in  one  night,  and  I 
don't  think  he'll  drown  himself.  The  authorities 
can  come  over  here  early  in  the  morning  and 
round  him  up,  if  he  is  here." 

"  I — er — I  don't  think  much  of  your  plan," 
murmured  Nat,  and  seemed  much  disturbed. 

In  about  a  quarter  of  an  hour  the  boys  reached 
the  island  shore,  at  the  spot  where  Nat's  motor- 
boat  was  tied  up.  They  helped  him  get  in  and 
start  up  the  engine.  He  had  been  told  how 
they  had  come  to  the  island. 

"  If  you  want  to,  you  can  tie  your  boat 
fast  to  the  stern  and  ride  back  with  me,"  he 
said. 

"  All  right,  Nat,  we'll  do  it,"  answered  Dave. 
"  It  is  getting  rather  late  and  it's  a  pretty  stiff 
row  to  the  school." 

The  motor-craft  was  started  up  and  sent  along 
in  the  direction  where  the  boys  had  left  the  Oak 
Hall  rowboat.  Their  course  took  them  past  the 
spot  where  the  wild  man's  boat  had  been  tied 
up. 

"Why,  look,  it's  gone!"  cried  Gus,  standing 
up  and  pointing  to  the  place. 

"  True   enough,"   answered   our  hero.     "  He 


THE  BANDANNA  HANDKERCHIEF      135 

must  have  gone  off  in  it  while  we  were  up  to  the 
cabin." 

"  He  can't  be  very  far  away,  Dave." 

The  boys  looked  up  and  down  the  river,  but 
could  catch  no  trace  of  the  missing  rowboat  or 
the  wild  man.  In  the  meantime,  the  motor-craft 
was  moving  forward,  where  the  other  boat  had 
been  beached  among  the  bushes. 

"  That  is  gone,  too !  "  ejaculated  Dave.  "  He 
has  taken  our  boat!  " 

"Oh,  do  you  really  think  so?"  asked  Gus. 
He  felt  that  he  was  responsible  for  the  craft,  as 
he  had  taken  it  from  the  school  boathouse. 

"  I  certainly  do  think  so,"  said  Dave.  "  It 
was  a  neat  trick  to  play." 

"  It's  a  wonder  he  didn't  take  the  motor-boat, 
too." 

"  Maybe  he  didn't  know  how  to  run  the  boat 
and  it  was  too  heavy  to  start  without  the  en- 
gine." 

"  I  guess  you  are  right!  "  came  suddenly  from 
Nat.     "Look  here!" 

He  had  stooped  down  to  pick  something  up 
from  the  grating  on  the  motor-boat's  bottom.  If 
was  a  torn  and  dirty  bandanna  handkerchief. 

"  The  wild  man's!  "  cried  Dave.  "  I  remem- 
ber it." 

"  I  am  glad  he  didn't  get  away  with  my  boat," 
returned  the  money-lender's  son,  drawing  a  deep 


136      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

breath.  "  I'll  keep  this  handkerchief  to  remem- 
ber him  by." 

"  Is  it  marked  in  any  way?  "  questioned  our 
hero.  "  Perhaps  it  has  his  name  or  initials  on 
it." 

"  Oh,  I  don't  think  so,"  returned  Nat.  "  Let 
us  hurry  up  and  get  back  to  the  school.  If  we 
are  late,  old  Haskers  will  be  after  us." 

"  Go  on  and  run  the  boat  as  fast  as  you  please, 
Nat,"  answered  Dave.  "  But  I  want  to  look  at 
that  handkerchief." 

Rather  unwillingly,  the  money-lender's  son 
passed  the  bandanna  over.  It  was  now  growing 
so  dark  that  Dave  could  see  but  little. 

"  Wait,  I'll  light  a  match,"  suggested  Gus,  and 
did  so,  and  by  the  protected  but  flickering  flare 
our  hero  looked  the  handkerchief  over.  In  one 
corner  there  was  a  faint  stamping. 

"  Looks  like  '  Rossmore  Sanitarium  '  to  me," 
said  Dave,  slowly.  "  Or  it  may  be  '  Bossmore  ' 
or  '  Crossmore.'  The  beginning  is  too  faded  to 
be  sure." 

"Bossmore  Sanitarium?"  queried  Nat,  and 
then  he  became  silent  and  thoughtful.  A  little 
later  he  asked  for  the  bandanna  and  placed  it  in 
his  pocket. 

The  run  in  the  motor-boat  to  the  school  dock 
did  not  take  long.  As  soon  as  Nat's  craft  was 
properly    housed,    Dave    and    Gus  assisted    the 


THE  BANDANNA  HANDKERCHIEF      137 

money-lender's  son  up  the  walk  and  across  the 
campus. 

"  I  suppose  I've  got  to  report  the  loss  of  the 
rowboat,"  said  Gus,  ruefully. 

"  It  wasn't  your  fault,  Gus,"  answered  Dave. 
"  I'll  go  with  you  to  Doctor  Clay." 

"  I  can't  go  with  my  lame  foot,"  put  in  Nat, 
and  he  hobbled  up  to'  his  dormitory,  eyed  by  sev- 
eral curious  students,  who  wanted  to  know  how 
he  had  gotten  hurt. 

The  boys  found  the  master  of  Oak  Hall  get- 
ting ready  for  supper.  He  looked  at  them  in- 
quiringly as  they  entered  his  study,  in  answer  to 
his  invitation. 

"Well!  well!"  he  exclaimed,  after  listening 
to  their  story.  "This  is  certainly  odd!  I  trust 
Poole  was  not  seriously  hurt." 

"  I  think  he  was  more  scared  than  hurt,"  an- 
swered Dave.  "  The  trap  scratched  his  ankle, 
that's  all.    I  am  sure  it  is  not  sprained  or  broken." 

"  But  the  rowboat "  put  in  Gus.    "  I  didn't 

mean " 

"  Do  not  worry  about  that,  Plum.  It  was  not 
your  fault.  I  am  glad  the  wild  man  did  not  harm 
you.  I  think  you  got  off  well.  After  this  you 
must  be  careful  about  how  you  go  out  after  this  re- 
markable creature." 

The  master  of  the  school  then  asked  for  more 
particulars  of  the  occurrence,  and  said  he  would 


138      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

notify  the  town  authorities  about  the  loss  of  the 
rowboat,  and  ask  that  a  general  hunt  take  place 
for  the  wild  man. 

"  They  ought  to  be  able  to  round  him  up  sooner 
or  later,"  he  added. 

There  was  considerable  excitement  in  the  school 
when  it  was  learned  that  the  wild  man  had  been 
heard  of  again.  The  boys  looked  for  the  strange 
individual  and  so  did  the  town  authorities  and 
many  farmers,  but  nothing  came  of  the  search. 
Nat  was  called  on  to  exhibit  the  bandanna  hand- 
kerchief and  did  so.  Nobody  could  make  out  the 
first  part  of  the  name  on  it,  for  the  handker- 
chief showed  a  small  hole  where  the  letters 
should  be. 

"  That  is  queer,"  said  Dave,  to  Roger  and 
Phil,  when  he  heard  of  this.  "  That  handkerchief 
did  not  have  a  hole  there  when  I  looked  at  it." 

"  Maybe  Nat  put  the  hole  there,"  returned  the 
senator's   son. 

"  Why  would  he  do  that?  "  questioned  Phil. 

"  So  that  nobody  would  know  what  the  name 
of  the  sanitarium  really  was.  I  believe  with 
Dave  that  Nat  knows  the  man,  or  knows  about 
him,  and  is  trying  to  keep  something  a  secret." 

"Hum!  Maybe  you  are  right,"  mused  the 
shipowner's  son. 

Phil  had  perfected  all  his  arrangements  for 
his  spread  at  the  hotel,  and  his  guests  for  that 


THE  BANDANNA  HANDKERCHIEF      139 

occasion  had  been  duly  invited  and  all  had  ac- 
cepted the  invitation.  It  had  been  arranged  with 
Mr.  Dale  that  the  boys  should  drive  to  the  hotel 
in  the  school  carryall,  and  Horsehair  was  to  have 
his  supper  in  town  and,  later  on,  bring  them 
home.  No  secret  was  made  of  the  affair,  for  this 
was  not  necessary. 

"  I  am  only  sorry  for  one  thing,"  said  Phil  to 
Dave.  "  That  is  that  I  can't  have  the  whole 
school  there.  But  that  would  go  beyond  my 
purse." 

"  Well,  you'll  have  enough,  Phil,  to  insure  a 
good  time,"  answered  our  hero. 

The  night  was  clear,  with  numberless  stars  glit- 
tering in  the  heavens,  when  the  carryall  drove 
around  to  the  Hall  door  and  the  boys  piled  in. 
All  were  in  the  best  of  humor,  and  they  left  the 
campus  in  a  burst  of  song. 

"  I've  been  saving  up  for  this !  "  cried  Ben. 
"  Haven't  eaten  a  mouthful  for  two  days!  " 

"  Say,  that  puts  me  in  mind  of  a  story,"  cried 
Shadow.  "  Once  a  poor  street-boy  was  invited 
to  a  Sunday-school  picnic.  The  ladies  fed  him 
all  he  could  hold  and  then  some.  At  last,  when 
he  couldn't  eat  another  mouthful,  and  saw  some 
cake  and  pie  and  ice-cream  going  to  waste,  what 
do  you  suppose  he  said?  " 

"  Give  it  up,  Shadow." 

"  He  said,  '  Say,  missus,  please  save  it  fer  me, 


140      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

won't  yer?  I  won't  eat  fer  a  week,  honest,  an' 
then  I'll  come  an'  finish  it  all  up  fer  yer!  '  " 

"  Good  for  the  street-boy!  " 

"  Say,  Phil,  you  won't  have  to  save  anything 
for  me!     I'll  eat  my  share  right  now!  " 

"  I've  been  in  training  for  this  feed!  " 

"  Shove  the  horses  along,  Horsehair;  we  don't 
want  the  soup  to  get  cold." 

"  I'm  a-shovin'  'em  along,"  answered  the  carry- 
all driver.     "  We'll  git  there  in  plenty  o'  time." 

"  Say,  Phil,  as  far  as  I  am  concerned,  you  can 
have  this  affair  pulled  off  once  a  month,"  re- 
marked Buster. 

"  Make  it  once  a  week,"  piped  in  Chip  Macklin. 
And  then  Luke  Watson  commenced  to  sing  a 
popular  negro  ditty  and  all  joined  lustily  in  the 
chorus* 

On  and  on  rattled  the  carryall  until  the  lights 
of  Oakdale  shone  in  the  distance.  The  boys 
continued  to  sing,  while  one  or  two  blew  freely  on 
the  tin  horns  they  carried.  Here  and  there  some- 
body would  come  rushing  to  a  window,  or  door, 
to  learn  what  was  doing. 

"It's  them  Oak  Hall  boys!"  cried  one  old 
farmer.     "  My,  but  they  do  have  high  times!  " 

"  So  they  do,"  returned  his  wife.  "  But  they 
are  good  boys,"  she  added,  for  some  of  them 
had  once  aided  her  in  capturing  a  runaway  bull. 

With  a  grand  flourish  the  carryall  swept  around 


THE  BANDANNA  HANDKERCHIEF      141 

the  last  corner  and  came  to  a  halt  in  front  of  the 
hotel.  Phil  had  hoped  to  see  some  extra  lights 
lit  and  was  somewhat  disappointed  to  see  only 
the  regular  lantern  burning. 

"  I  told  him  to  light  up  freely  and  he  said  he 
would,"  he  whispered  to  Dave. 

"  Maybe  he  thought  you  meant  the  dining- 
room,  Phil." 

The  students  piled  out  of  the  carryall  and 
waited  for  Phil,  as  host,  to  lead  the  way  into  the 
hotel.  All  marched  up  the  steps  and  into  the 
broad  hallway.  There  they  were  confronted  by 
the  hotel  proprietor,  who  came  to  meet  them  in 
his  shirtsleeves.  He  looked  completely  bewil- 
dered. 

"  Well,  we  are  here  for  that  supper,  Mr. 
Sparr!  "  cried  Phil.  "  I  hope  you  are  all  ready 
for  us!" 

The  hotel  man  looked  at  the  boys  in  amaze- 
ment. His  jaw  dropped.  Then  he  gasped  out 
the  words: 

"Well,  I'll  be  jiggered!" 


CHAPTER  XV 

AT   THE    HOTEL 

At  once  Dave  and  all  the  other  students  who 
had  come  to  the  hotel  with  Phil,  expecting  a  fine 
spread,  saw  that  something  was  wrong.  They 
looked  questioningly  at  the  shipowner's  son  and 
at  the  hotel  proprietor. 

"What's  the  matter?"  demanded  Phil, 
quickly. 

"Matter?"  repeated  Jason  Sparr.  "That's 
just  exactly  what  I'd  like  to  know." 

"You — you  are  ready  for  us,  aren't  you?" 
went  on  Phil,  with  a  sudden  catch  in  his  voice. 

"  Why  should  I  be  ready,  when  you  called  the 
whole  thing  off?  "  growled  the  hotel  man.  "  Fine 
way  to  do,  I  must  say,"  he  continued,  with  strong 
anger  in  his  voice. 

"  Called  the  whole  thing  off?  "  repeated  Phil. 
"Me?" 

"  Yes,  you  !  "  shouted  Jason  Sparr.  "  And  after 
we  had  everything  in  fine  shape,  too !  Say,  don't 
you  think  my  stuff  is  too  good  to  send  to  the  Old 
Ladies'  Home?"  he  demanded. 

142 


AT  THE  HOTEL  143 

"  There  must  be  some  mistake  here,  Mr. 
Sparr,"  put  in  our  hero.  "  Phil  didn't  call  this 
spread  off.    We  are  here  for  it,  as  you  can  see." 

"  But  he  did  call  it  off — this  noon,"  returned 
the  hotel  proprietor.  "  And  he  wasn't  a  bit  nice 
about  it,  either.  When  I  asked  him  what  I  should 
do  with  the  extras  I  had  ordered  he  told  me 
to  do  as  I  pleased — send  'em  to  the  Old  Ladies' 
Home,  or  throw  'em  away!  He  didn't  act  a  bit 
nice." 

"  Say,  you  chump,  you !  "  shouted  Phil,  grow- 
ing suddenly  angry.  "  I  didn't  send  you  any 
word  at  all  about  calling  it  off.    I " 

"  Don't  you  call  me  a  chump,  you  young  ras- 
cal! "  shouted  the  hotel  man,  in  equal  heat.  "  I 
got  your  message  over  the  telephone " 

"  I  never  sent  any,"  interrupted  Phil. 

"  It  must  be  a  trick,"  cried  Roger. 

"Who   played  it?"   queried  another  student. 

"  Maybe  this  is  the  work  of  some  of  the  Mili- 
tary Academy  fellows." 

"  Like  as  not." 

"  But  how  did  they  learn  that  Phil  was  going 
to  give  the  spread?  " 

"  Give  it  up." 

"  Maybe  some  of  our  own  fellows  did  it — 
some  who  didn't  get  an  invitation  to  attend,"  sug- 
gested Chip. 

"  Would  any  one  be  so  mean?  "  asked  Buster. 


H4   DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

"  Some  of  them  might  be,"  murmured  Gus. 

"  I  didn't  send  you  any  word,"  went  on  Phil, 
in  greater  anger  than  ever. 

"  Well,  I  got  word,  and  so  did  Professor 
Smuller.  He  was  mad,  too,  because  he  lost  an- 
other job  taking  yours." 

"  Why  didn't  you  make  sure  the  word  was  sent 
by  Mr.  Lawrence?"  demanded  Ben.  "You 
could  have  done  that  easily  enough." 

"  I  didn't  think  that  was  necessary.  This  fel- 
low said " 

"  I  tell  you  I  didn't  send  word!  "  shouted  Phil, 
growing  more  angry  every  instant.  "  You  might 
have  known  it  was  a  trick." 

"  Of  course,  he  might  have  known,"  added 
Ben.  He  lowered  his  voice.  "  Say,  Phil,  if  he 
doesn't  give  us  the  supper  make  him  give  your 
money  back." 

11  Sure  he's  got  to  give  me  the  money  back," 
cried  the  shipowner's  son. 

"  See  here,  you  can't  bulldoze  me!  "  cried  the 
hotel  proprietor.  "  I've  had  trouble  enough  as  it 
is.  I  got  ready  for  this  spread  and  then  you 
called  it  off,  and  you  were  mighty  sassy  about  it, 
too.     I've  lost  a  lot  of  money." 

A  wordy  war  followed,  lasting  the  best  part 
of  a  half  an  hour.  Through  this  it  was  learned 
that  the  hotel  man  had  prepared  for  the  spread, 
and  so  had  the  professor  of  music.     Just  after 


AT  THE  HOTEL  145 

noon  telephone  messages  had  come  in,  calling  the 
whole  affair  off.  Some  hot  words  had  passed  over 
the  wire,  and  the  hotel  man  was  considerably 
ruffled.  The  party  talking  to  Jason  Sparr  had 
said  that  when  the  spread  did  come  off  it  would 
be  held  elsewhere — intimating  that  a  better  place 
than  his  hotel  could  be  found. 

"  It's  all  some  trick,  to  get  my  business  away 
from  me!"  stormed  the  hotel  man.  "I  won't 
stand  for  it!  " 

"  I  didn't  send  the  messages,  and  I  either  want 
the  spread  or  I  want  my  money  back,"  declared 
Phil,  stubbornly.  And  then  more  words  followed, 
until  it  looked  as  if  there  might  be  a  fight.  Fi- 
nally, in  a  rage,  Jason  Sparr  ordered  the  students 
from  his  place. 

"  All  right,  we'll  go,  but  you  haven't  heard 
the  end  of  this !  "  cried  Phil. 

"  You'll  catch  it,  for  treating  us  so  meanly," 
added  Ben. 

"  Don't  you  threaten  me,  or  I'll  have  the  law 
on  you!  "  roared  Jason  Sparr. 

"  Perhaps  I'll  call  on  the  law  myself,"  an- 
swered Phil,  and  then,  unable  to  control  himself, 
he  shook  his  fist  at  the  hotel  man.  Then  all  the 
boys  filed  out  of  the  place,  some  bystanders  look- 
ing on  in  wonder. 

"  Well,  what  do  you  think  of  this!  "  cried  Gus, 
when  outside. 


146      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

Phil,  I  wouldn't  say  anything  more  just  now 
— you  are  too  excited,"  said  Dave,  catching  his 
chum  by  the  arm. 

"  Yes,  but  that  fellow  is  as  mean  as — as  dirt!  " 
answered  the  shipowner's  son. 

"  He  hasn't  any  right  to  keep  Phil's  money," 
said  one  student. 

"  Then  the  feast  is  called  off,  is  it?  "  said  Bus- 
ter, with  something  like  a  groan  in  his  voice. 

"  And  somebody  is  going  to  have  the  laugh  on 
us!  "  added  Shadow.  "  Say,  this  puts  me  in  mind 
of  a  story,"  he  added,  brightening.  "  Once  some 
boys  were  going " 

"Oh,  stow  it,  Shadow!" 

"  This  is  no  time  for  stories!  " 

"  I'd  rather  go  down  to  the  cemetery  and 
weep." 

"  Nobody  is  going  to  have  the  laugh  on  me," 
cried  Phil.    "  We'll  get  something  somewhere." 

"  Right  you  are !  "  cried  Dave.  "  I've  got  it!  " 
he  added.  "  Let  us  drive  over  to  Rockville  and 
get  something  at  the  hotel  there.  I  know  the  pro- 
prietor and  he's  a  nice  man." 

"  Better  telephone  to  him  first  and  make  sure," 
suggested  Roger. 

"  I'll  do  it,"  said  Phil. 

The  carryall  was  brought  around  again  and  all 
piled  in  and  drove  down  to  a  drug  store  where 
there  was  a  telephone  booth.    Into  the  booth  went 


AT  THE  HOTEL  147 

Phil,  to  communicate  with  the  hotel  in  Rockville. 
He  came  out  smiling. 

"  It's  all  fixed  up  and  I  guess  we'll  have  some- 
thing this  time,"  he  said.  "  But  just  wait;  I'll  fix 
that  mean  Jason  Sparr,  see  if  I  don't!  " 

"  It's  quite  a  drive  to  Rockville,"  protested 
Horsehair,  when  they  told  the  driver  what  was 
wanted. 

"  Never  mind,  it  will  do  the  horses  good," 
cried  Roger.  "  They  are  getting  too  fat  stand- 
ing still." 

"  Say,  Phil,"  whispered  Dave.  "  If  you 
haven't  got  money  enough  along,  I  can  let  you 
have  some." 

"  Good,"  was  the  whispered  return.  "  I  was 
going  to  speak  of  that,  as  soon  as  I  got  a  chance." 

The  affair  at  the  Oakdale  hotel  had  put  some- 
thing of  a  damper  on  the  crowd,  and  all  the  talk 
was  of  how  Jason  Sparr  had  acted  and  who  had 
been  mean  enough  to  play  such  a  trick. 

"  Maybe  it  was  Nat  Poole,"  said  Chip. 

"  What  makes  you  think  that?  "  asked  Phil. 

"  Oh,  he  is  mean  enough  for  anything." 

"  If  Nat  did  this  I'll— I'll  mash  him!  "  cried 
Phil,  with  energy. 

"  Can't  you  find  out?  "  asked  Roger. 

"  I'll  try — but  most  likely  the  fellow  who  did  it 
took  care  to  cover  up  his  tracks.  Sparr  didn't 
know  where  the  messages  came  from." 


148      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

On  and  on  rolled  the  carryall,  until  the  lights 
of  Rockville  appeared  in  the  distance.  By  this 
time  all  of  the  students  were  decidedly  hungry. 
They  rolled  up  to  the  little  hotel  and  those  with 
horns  gave  a  couple  of  shrill  blasts. 

This  time  there  was  a  warm  welcome  by  the 
host.    He  came  out,  bowing  and  smiling. 

"  Did  the  best  I  could  for  you,  on  such  short 
notice,"  he  said,  as  they  entered.  "  Next  time,  if 
you'll  only  give  me  a  little  more  time " 

"  That's  all  right,  let's  have  what  you've  got," 
cried  Buster.  He  was  hungry  enough  to  eat  any- 
thing. 

They  were  ushered  into  what  was  usually  the 
private  dining-room  of  the  little  hostelry.  The 
table  had  been  spread  out  and  was  tastefully 
decorated  with  paper  chrysanthemums,  made  by 
the  hotel  man's  daughter.  A  parlor-lamp  and 
several  others  shed  light  on  the  scene. 

"This  looks  good!"  murmured  Roger. 

"  Wait  till  you  see  what  we  get  to  eat,"  an- 
swered Sam.  "  It  may  be  slim — on  such  short 
notice." 

But  he  was  agreeably  mistaken,  the  spread  was 
all  that  could  be  desired  There  were  oysters  on 
the  half-shell,  tomato  soup,  fried  chicken,  mashed 
potatoes,  lettuce  salad,  olives,  and  also  coffee,  pie, 
and  various  cookies.  It  was  served  in  home  style, 
by  the  hotel  man's  daughter  and  a  hired  girl. 


AT  THE  HOTEL  149 

"  Say,  this  is  fine !  "  cried  Buster,  smacking  his 
lips. 

"  Better,  maybe,  than  if  we  had  stayed  at  the 
other  place,"  added  Dave. 

"  Only  we  haven't  got  the  music,"  said  Phil. 
He  was  glad  that  matters  had  taken  such  a  nice 
turn,  but  still  angry  over  what  had  gone  before. 

As  they  had  already  lost  so  much  time,  the  boys 
did  not  dare  linger  too  long  over  the  spread. 
Horsehair  was  given  something  to  eat  in  another 
room,  and  then  they  set  out  on  the  return.  Songs 
were  sung  and  jokes  cracked,  and  Shadow  was 
permitted  to  tell  half  a  dozen  of  his  best  stories. 
Yet,  with  it  all,  the  edge  had  been  taken  off  the 
celebration,  and  Phil  knew  this  as  well  as  any- 
body, and  was  correspondingly  chagrined. 

"  I'll  make  that  man  square  up  with  me,  see 
if  I  don't,"  he  said  to  Dave,  as  they  arrived  at 
the  school.  "  I'm  not  going  to  lose  all  that 
money." 

"  Well,  be  careful  of  what  you  do,  Phil," 
warned  our  hero.     "  Don't  get  into  a  fight." 

The  next  day  the  shipowner's  son  sent  out  two 
sharp  letters,  one  to  Jason  Sparr  and  the  other  to 
Professor  Smuller.  He  stated  that  he  was  not 
responsible  for  the  trip-up  that  had  taken  place, 
and  demanded  his  money  be  returned  to  him, 
otherwise  he  would  put  the  matter  in  the  hands  of 
the  law. 


150      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

To  these  letters  came  speedy  replies.  The 
musical  professor  said  he  was  sorry  a  mistake  had 
been  made,  and  he  returned  the  amount  paid  to 
him,  and  he  further  stated  that  if  he  could  dis- 
cover who  had  played  the  trick  he  would  make 
that  party  settle  up. 

"  That's  decent  of  him,"  said  Phil.  "  I  am 
going  to  send  him  back  five  dollars  for  his  trou- 
ble." And  this  he  did,  much  to  Professor  Smul- 
ler's  satisfaction. 

The  letter  from  Jason  Sparr  was  entirely  dif- 
ferent. He  berated  Phil  for  the  stand  taken, 
and  stated  that  he  would  pay  back  nothing.  He 
added  that  he  had  learned  how  the  crowd  had 
gone  to  Rockville  to  dine,  and  said  he  was  satis- 
fied that  it  was  all  a  trick  to  get  patronage  away 
from  his  hotel.  He  added  that  he  had  had  trou- 
ble enough  with  people  from  Oak  Hall  school 
and  he  wanted  no  more  of  it. 

"  I  guess  I'll  have  to  sue  him,"  growled  Phil, 
on  showing  the  letter  to  Dave  and  Roger. 

"  I  don't  think  I'd  bother,"  answered  Dave. 
"  Put  it  down  to  Experience,  and  let  it  go  at 
that." 

"  If  you  sued  him  it  would  cost  as  much  as 
you'd  get,  and  more,"  added  the  senator's 
son. 

"  Humph !  I  don't  feel  like  swallowing  it," 
growled  Phil.     "  I'll  get  it  out  of  him  somehow." 


AT  THE  HOTEL  151 

"  He  must  have  lost  something — if  he  got 
ready  for  the  spread,"  said  Dave. 

"  Oh,  I  don't  think  he  lost  much.  He's  a  close 
one — to  my  way  of  thinking,"  responded  the  ship- 
owner's son. 


CHAPTER  XVI 

THE   BLOWING   UP   OF  THE   BRIDGE 

"  Say,  this  is  something  fierce,  Dave!  " 

;'  I  agree  with  you,  Roger.  I  don't  see  how  we 
are  going  to  do  such  a  long  lesson." 

"  Old  Haskers  is  getting  worse  and  worse," 
growled  Phil.  "  I  think  we  ought  to  report  it 
to  Doctor  Clay." 

"  Just  what  I  think,"  came  from  Ben.  "  He 
keeps  piling  it  on  harder  and  harder.  I  think 
he  is  trying  to  break  us." 

"Break  us?"  queried  our  hero,  looking  up 
from  his  book. 

"  Yes,  make  us  miss  entirely,  you  know." 

"  Why  should  he  want  us  to  do  that?  "  asked 
Roger. 

"  Then  we  wouldn't  be  able  to  graduate  this 
coming  June." 

"Would  he  be  mean  enough  to  do  that?" 
asked  Dave. 

"  I  think  he  would  be  mean  enough  for  any- 
thing," responded  Phil.  "  Oh,  I  am  not  going 
to  stand  it!  "  he  cried. 

153 


THE  BLOWING  UP  OF  THE  BRIDGE      153 

The  boys  had  just  come  upstairs,  after  an  extra 
hard  session  in  their  Latin  class.  All  were 
aroused  over  the  treatment  received  at  the  hands 
of  Job  Haskers.  He  had  been  harsh  and  dic- 
tatorial to  the  last  degree,  and  several  times  it 
had  looked  as  if  there  might  be  an  outbreak. 

The  next  day  the  outbreak  came.  Phil  sprang 
up  in  class  and  denounced  the  unreasonable 
teacher,  and  Ben  followed.  Then  Dave  and 
Roger  took  a  hand,  and  so  did  Buster  and  sev- 
eral others. 

"Sit  down!  Sit  down!"  cried  Job  Haskers, 
growing  white  in  the  face.  "  Sit  down,  and  keep 
quiet." 

"  I  won't  keep  quiet,"  answered  the  ship- 
owner's son.  "  You  are  treating  us  unfairly, 
Mr.  Haskers,  and  I  won't  stand  for  it." 

"  Neither  will  I,"  added  Ben. 

"  Sit  down,  I  tell  you!  "  stormed  the  instructor. 

But  none  of  the  students  obeyed  him,  and  in  a 
minute  more  the  room  was  in  an  uproar.  One  of 
the  under-teachers  heard  it,  and  quickly  sent  for 
Doctor  Clay. 

As  the  master  of  Oak  Hall  strode  into  the 
classroom  there  was  a  pause.  He  mounted  the 
platform  and  put  up  his  hand,  and  soon  all  became 
quiet. 

"  Young  gentlemen,  be  seated,"  he  said,  in  his 
strict  but  kindly  fashion,  and  instantly  every  stu- 


154      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

dent  sat  down.  Then  he  turned  to  the  teacher. 
11  Mr.  Haskers,  what  is  the  trouble?  "  he  asked. 

"  The  trouble  is  that  certain  students  will  not 
learn  their  lessons,"  answered  Job  Haskers, 
sourly.     "  I  had  to  take  them  to  task  for  it." 

"Who  are  those  students?" 

"  Lawrence,  Basswood,  Porter,  Morr, 
Beggs " 

"  That  will  do  for  the  present.  Lawrence, 
stand  up,"  ordered  Doctor  Clay. 

Phil  did  as  requested,  and  the  eyes  of  the  en- 
tire class  were  fastened  on  the  shipowner's  son. 

"  Now,  Lawrence,  what  have  you  to  say  for 
yourself?  "  went  on  the  doctor. 

In  a  plain,  straightforward  manner,  Phil  told 
his  side  of  the  story.  Several  times  Job  Haskers 
wanted  to  interrupt  him,  but  Doctor  Clay  would 
not  permit  this.  Then  Ben  was  questioned,  and 
after  that  the  master  of  the  school  turned  to  Dave. 

"  Is  your  complaint  the  same,  Porter?  " 

11  Yes,  sir." 

"And  yours,  Morr?" 

11  Yes,  sir." 

"  What  have  you  to  say,  Beggs?  " 

"  The  same.  The  lessons  lately  have  been  al- 
together too  hard — we  simply  can't  get  through 
them.    We  never  had  such  long  lessons  before." 

"  I  have  given  them  only  the  regular  lessons," 
put  in  Job  Haskers. 


THE  BLOWING  UP  OF  THE  BRIDGE       155 

"  Ahem !  Let  us  go  over  them  and  see  what 
can  be  done,"  responded  the  doctor.  "  If  the 
students  are  willing  to  work  we  do  not  want  to 
overburden  them,  Mr.  Haskers." 

A  discussion  lasting  over  a  quarter  of  an  hour 
followed,  and  in  the  end  the  lessons  were  cut 
down,  much  to  the  satisfaction  of  the  whole  class, 
who  felt  like  cheering  the  head  of  the  school. 
The  only  person  who  was  not  satisfied  was  Job 
Haskers.  He  was  invited  to  go  out  with  the  doc- 
tor to  his  private  office,  and  came  back  some  time 
later,    looking   anything  but  happy. 

"  I'll  wager  he  got  a  calling  down!  "  whispered 
Phil  to  Dave.     "  I  hope  he  did." 

He  was  right  about  the  "  calling  down,"  as  he 
expressed  it.  The  master  of  Oak  Hall  had 
spoken  very  plainly  to  the  instructor,  and  given 
Job  Haskers  to  understand  that  he  must  get  along 
better  with  the  boys  in  the  future,  and  treat  them 
with  more  consideration,  or  he  would  be  asked  to 
resign  from  the  staff  of  the  school. 

Several  days  slipped  by  and  during  that  time 
Dave  paid  close  attention  to  his  lessons.  He  had 
also  a  theme  to  write  on  "  The  Future  of  Our 
Country,"  and  he  devoted  considerable  time  to 
this,  hoping  it  would  receive  at  least  honorable 
mention,  even  if  it  did  not  win  the  prize  offered 
for  the  best  production. 

"  Come  on  down  to  town !  "  cried  Roger,  one 


156      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

afternoon,  as  he  rushed  in,  "  Big  excitement  on! 
Going  to  blow  the  railroad  up !  " 

"Blow  the  railroad  up?"  queried  our  hero. 
"  What  sort  of  a  joke  is  this,  Roger?  " 

"  No  joke,  at  all.  You  know  the  old  stone 
bridge  over  the  creek?  " 

"  Sure." 

"  Well,  the  railroad  wants  to  get  rid  of  it  and 
do  it  quickly,  so  they  can  build  another,  so  the 
contractors  are  going  to  blow  the  old  bridge  up 
with  dynamite  at  half-past  four  o'clock." 

"Let's  go!"  burst  out  Phil.  "It  will  be  a 
great  sight — to  see  that  old  bridge  go  up." 

"  Right  you  arel  "  cried  Ben. 

All  the  boys  were  enthusiastic,  and  in  the  end 
fully  fifty  students  got  permission  to  go  down  to 
Oakdale  to  see  the  old  stone  bridge  destroyed. 

"  None  of  you  must  go  very  close,"  warned 
Doctor  Clay,  "  for  dynamite  is  powerful  stuff — 
eight  times  more  powerful  than  gunpowder." 

"  We'll  keep  away,  don't  fear  about  that,"  an- 
swered several. 

"  Dynamite  isn't  to  be  fooled  with,"  added 
Dave. 

"  Say,  that  puts  me  in  mind  of  a  story!  "  cried 
Shadow.  "  A  Dutch  laborer  working  on  the  rail- 
road was  much  annoyed  by  the  other  laborers 
coming  along  and  knocking  his  stiff  old  derby  hat 
over  his  eyes.    At  last  he  got  good  and  mad  and 


THE  BLOWING  UP  OF  THE  BRIDGE      157 

when  he  saw  a  chance,  he  stole  a  stick  of  dynamite 
from  the  shanty  where  it  was  kept.  He  stuck 
the  dynamite  in  his  hat  and  then  went  around  to 
the  other  laborers.  '  Now,  chust  hit  dot  hat  vonce 
again  of  you  dare!  '  he  said." 

"  And  nobody  dared,"  added  Roger,  as  a  gen- 
eral laugh  went  up. 

"  I  once  saw  a  fellow  take  a  stick  of  dynamite 
and  burn  it  like  a  torch,"  remarked  Ben.  "  It 
gave  me  a  cold  chill  to  see  him  do  it." 

"  And  it  didn't  explode?  "  queried  Roger. 

"  No.  But  I  heard  afterwards  that  if  he  had 
struck  it  ever  so  lightly,  it  might  have  blown  us 
all  as  high  as  a  kite." 

"  It  sure  is  great  stuff,"  remarked  Phil. 
"  Say,"  he  went  on  suddenly,  "  I  wish  they  were 
going  to  blow  up  old  Sparr's  hotel  instead  of  the 
bridge." 

"  So  do  I,"  added  Ben.  "  He's  about  as  mean 
as  they  make  'em." 

"  .That  man  ought  certainly  to  have  something 
done  to  him,"  was  Roger's  comment. 

"  Well,  he  won't  make  a  success  of  his  hotel 
if  he  treats  everybody  as  he  treated  Phil,"  said 
Dave. 

"  He  doesn't  deserve  any  success,"  growled  the 
shipowner's  son. 

When  the  students  arrived  in  the  vicinity  of 
the  old  bridge  they  found  a  large  crowd  assem- 


158      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

bled,  including  many  acquaintances  from  Rock- 
ville  Military  Academy,  and  people  from  the 
town.  Red  flags  had  been  placed  around,  and  no- 
body was  allowed  to  get  very  close  to  the  old 
structure. 

"  There  is  where  they  have  the  dynamite 
stored,"  said  Phil,  pointing  to  a  shanty  not  far 
away.     "See  the  sign?" 

"  That's  a  good  spot  to  steer  clear  of,"  re- 
turned Dave,  with  a  grin. 

"  Oh,  I'm  not  afraid  of  the  stuff,"  answered 
the   shipowner's   son. 

In  the  crowd  of  men  and  boys  the  students  be- 
came more  or  less  separated.  There  was  a  great 
thrill  when  the  word  was  passed  that  everything 
was  in  readiness  for  the  blowing  up  of  the  old 
bridge. 

"She's  going!"  cried  Roger  to  Dave. 

Boom!  came  the  dull,  heavy  roar,  and  the 
boys  saw  the  stones  of  the  old  bridge  flying  up- 
ward in  all  directions.  The  ground  shook  all 
around  them,  and  the  water  from  the  creek  was 
splashed  on  high.  A  great  cloud  of  smoke  and 
dust  filled  the  air.  Then  came  silence,  followed 
by  a  wild  cheering  from  the  younger  element. 

"  Certainly  a  great  sight,"  was  Dave's  com- 
ment. 

"  Too  bad  it  didn't  last  longer,"  sighed  Buster. 

"  It  wasn't  quite  as  big  as  I  thought  it  would 


Boom  !  came  the  dull,  heavy  roar. — Page  158. 


THE  BLOWING  UP  OF  THE  BRIDGE       159 

be,"  said  Luke.  "  I  thought  some  of  the  stones 
would  fly  about  a  mile  high." 

"  Good  enough  for  a  free  exhibition,"  put  in 
Gus.     "  Beats  fireworks  all  hollow." 

The  boys  walked  down  to  the  ruins  of  the  old 
bridge  and  hung  around  for  the  best  part  of  a 
half  an  hour.  Then,  in  groups  of  five  or  six,  they 
walked  to  town,  to  look  around  there  before  re- 
turning to  Oak  Hall.  Dave  and  his  chums  passed 
Jason  Sparr's  hotel.  He  was  on  the  veranda  and 
scowled  at  them,  and  Phil  and  some  of  the  others 
scowled  in  return. 

"  Have  you  done  anything  about  that  Sparr 
matter  yet,  Phil?  "  asked  one  of  the  lads. 

"  No;  but  I  will  soon,  you  wait  and  see,"  was 
the  growled-out  reply. 

On  the  main  street  of  the  town  some  of  the 
boys  separated,  to  do  a  little  shopping,  and  then 
some  walked  to  the  school,  while  others  got  in 
the  carryall  that  happened  to  be  at  hand.  As  a 
consequence  some  of  the  students  did  not  get  back 
to  Oak  Hall  until  some  time  after  the  supper 
hour. 

Dave  was  alone  when  he  entered  the  dining- 
hall  and  he  was  surprised  to  see  that  neither  Phil 
nor  Roger  was  present.  Ben  was  also  absent  and 
likewise  Shadow. 

"  Didn't  some  of  them  come  in  with  you?  "  he 
asked  of  Buster. 


160     DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

"  Gus  and  Luke  did,"  was  the  reply.  "  I  don't 
know  where  the  others  are." 

The  meal  was  almost  at  an  end  when  Phil, 
Ben,  and  Roger  made  their  appearance.  They 
had  but  little  to  say,  but  Dave  could  see  that 
something  was  wrong. 

"  Had  another  wrangle  with  Jason  Sparr,"  ex- 
plained Phil,  after  the  meal.  "  He  followed  me 
to  one  of  the  stores,  and  I  told  him  just  what  I 
thought  of  him." 

"  And  he  threatened  to  have  Phil  arrested  for 
defamation  of  character,"  added  Ben. 

"  But  he  didn't  dare  to  do  it,"  declared  the 
shipowner's  son. 

"  Better  let  him  alone,"  advised  Dave. 
"  You'll  gain  nothing  by  keeping  in  hot  water 
over  it,  Phil." 

That  night  all  of  the  boys  had  to  study  hard, 
and  consequently  they  retired  to  their  dormi- 
tories early.  The  only  exception  was  Polly  Vane, 
who  had  to  go  to  Oakdale  to  meet  a  relative  who 
would  stop  off  but  who  was  going  away  again  on 
the  midnight  train. 

The  boys  studied  until  ten  o'clock  and  then  re- 
tired. Dave  was  completely  tired  out  and  his 
head  had  hardly  touched  the  pillow  when  he  was 
sound  asleep. 

He  was  awakened  about  two  hours  later  by 
the  sounds  of  excited  talking.     He  opened  his 


THE  BLOWING  UP  OF  THE  BRIDGE       161 

eyes  to  behold  Polly  Vane  standing  in  the  dormi- 
tory fully  dressed,  while  Phil  was  sitting  on  the 
edge  of  the  bed,  and  Ben  and  Roger  and  some 
others  were  just  rousing  up. 

"  What's  going  on?  "  Dave  asked,  sleepily. 

"  A  whole  lot,  if  what  Polly  says  is  true,"  an- 
swered the  shipowner's  son. 

"  But  it  is  true,  upon  my  word!  "  cried  the  girl- 
ish student.     "  I  heard  the  explosion  myself." 

"What  explosion?"  asked  several. 

"  An  explosion  in  Oakdale,  to-night,"  answered 
Polly.  "  Somebody  tried  to  dynamite  Jason 
Sparr's  hotel!  " 


CHAPTER  XVII 

A  SERIOUS  ACCUSATION 

Instantly  there  was  great  excitement  in  the 
dormitory,  and  all  of  the  students  crowded 
around  Polly,  to  learn  what  he  might  have  to 
say. 

"  It  was  this  way,  don't  you  know,"  said  the 
scholarly  youth.  "  I  went  to  Oakdale  to  see  my 
uncle,  who  stopped  off  on  his  trip  from  Port- 
land to  St.  Louis.  He  wanted  to  ask  me  about 
some  family  matters,  and  he  didn't  have  time 
to  come  to  the  Hall.  I  went  down  in  the 
buggy " 

"  Oh,  never  mind  that,  Polly,  tell  about  the 
explosion,"  interrupted  Roger. 

"  Well,  I  had  just  seen  my  uncle  to  the  mid- 
night train  and  was  getting  into  the  buggy  to  come 
back  when  I  heard  a  low  boom !  coming  from 
the  direction  of  Sparr's  hotel.  The  station- 
master  and  I  were  the  only  people  around,  and 
I  asked  him  what  the  noise  meant,  but  he  said  he 
didn't  know.  Then  he  jumped  into  the  buggy 
with  me  to  find  out.    We  drove  to  the  hotel,  and 

162 


A  SERIOUS  ACCUSATION  163 

there  was  excitement  enough,  I  can  tell  you.  The 
girls  and  women  folks  were  screaming  wildly 
and  Mr.  Sparr  and  some  men  were  running 
around,  not  knowing  what  to  do.  Soon  a  crowd 
began  to  collect,  and  then  we  found  out  that  a 
wing  of  the  building — where  the  dining-room  is — 
had  been  blown  up.  Some  men  from  the  rail- 
road said  it  had  been  done  by  dynamite — the  kind 
used  for  blowing  up  that  old  bridge." 

"Was  anybody  hurt?"  asked  Dave. 

"  Nobody  but  an  old  man  who  was  sleeping  in 
the  house  next  to  the  addition.  He  got  so  scared 
he  jumped  from  an  upper  window  and  sprained 
his  ankle.  Oh,  that  dining-room  is  a  sight,  I  can 
tell  you !  One  end  is  completely  gone — the  wall 
away  from  the  main  house — and  all  the  tables 
and  chairs  and  ornaments  smashed !  And  the  roof 
is  full  of  holes!" 

"  How  was  it  done?  "  questioned  Gus. 

"  The  dynamite  was  placed  at  the  side  of  the 
dining-room  foundation,  according  to  the  railroad 
men,  and  it  was  set  off  by  some  sort  of  clock- 
work," answered  Polly. 

"And  who  did  it?"  asked  Shadow. 

"  They  don't  know,  yet.  But  Sparr  suspects 
Phil.  That  is  why  I  woke  him  up  as  soon  as  I 
came  in,"  continued  the  girlish  student. 

"  Suspects  me !  "  exclaimed  the  shipowner's  son. 

"  Yes.     He  says  you   are  the  only  one  who 


164      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

would  do  such  a  thing — you  and  the  crowd  who 
have  been  backing  you  up." 

"Well,  I  never!" 

"  Maybe  he  means  me,  too,"  murmured  Ben. 

"  He  does,  and  all  the  others  in  the  crowd,  too. 
He  thinks  it's  a  plot  to  get  square  because  he 
wouldn't  give  Phil  his  dinner  money  back." 

"  I  had  nothing  to  do  with  it,"  declared  Phil, 
stoutly. 

"  Nor  I,"  added  Ben. 

"  Well,  I  am  sure  I  wasn't  in  it,"  said  Dave. 
"  I  didn't  dream  of  such  a  thing." 

"  Nor  did  I,"  added  Roger  and  some  others. 

The  news  soon  spread  through  several  dormi- 
tories, and  the  boys  discussed  the  startling  hap- 
pening in  whispers.     Phil  was  greatly  disturbed. 

"  I  didn't  do  it,  but  I  know  he'll  try  to  fasten 
it  on  me,"  he  told  Dave.  He  did  not  add  that 
he  had  written  to  his  father  about  the  affair  of 
the  feast  and  his  parent  had  sent  a  warning  letter 
back,  ordering  his  son  to  have  nothing  more  to 
do  with  Jason  Sparr. 

The  next  morning  the  news  was  all  over  the 
school.  Nat  Poole  heard  of  it,  and  he  and  some 
of  his  cronies  declared  it  as  their  opinion  that 
Phil  and  some  others  were  to  blame.  This 
brought  on  a  fistic  encounter  between  Ben  and 
the  money-lender's  son,  and  the  latter  got  a  black 
eye  in  consequence. 


A  SERIOUS  ACCUSATION  165 

"  You  sha'n't  say  I  did  it — or  had  anything 
to  do  with  it,"  said  Ben,  when  Nat  backed  away, 
having  had  enough  of  the  battle. 

"  Humph!  just  wait  till  the  law  has  its  say!  " 
retorted  Nat.  "  Then  maybe  you'll  get  what  is 
coming  to  you !  " 

Some  of  the  boys  wanted  to  go  to  town — to  see 
the  damaged  hotel — but  Doctor  Clay  would  not 
permit  this.  In  the  meantime  the  wreckage  was 
being  cleared  away,  and  the  authorities  and  Jason 
Sparr  were  doing  their  best  to  locate  the  author 
or  authors  of  the  crime. 

Then  came  a  great  surprise,  in  the  shape  of  a 
letter  delivered  in  a  mysterious  way  to  the  hotel- 
keeper.  He  was  seated  in  the  hotel  office  in  the 
evening,  talking  to  one  of  the  town  constables, 
when  a  missive  was  hurled  at  him  through  an 
open  window.  He  dodged  at  first,  fearing  more 
dynamite,  but  when  he  saw  it  was  only  a  letter,  he 
picked  it  up  and  turned  it  over.  It  was  addressed 
to  him  and  marked  "Private  and  Personal." 

"  Wonder  what  this  is?  "  he  mused,  and  walked 
over  to  the  light  to  read  the  letter.  It  was  writ- 
ten on  a  single  sheet  of  paper,  in  lead  pencil,  and 
evidently  in  a  disguised  hand.  It  contained  but 
a  few  lines,  as  follows: 

"  If  you  want  to  catch  the  fellows  who  blew  up 
your  hotel  have  these  boys  of  Oak  Hall  school  ar- 


1 66      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

rested  at  once,  Philip  Lawrence,  Benj.  Basswood, 
David  Porter,  Roger  Morr,  and  Joseph  Beggs. 
They  were  together  when  it  was  done,  and  one  or 
more  of  them  surely  did  it. 

11  One  Who  Knows." 


The  hotel-keeper  read  this  letter  several  times 
and  then  stuffed  it  into  his  pocket.  Then  he  went 
into  the  next  room  and  drew  from  a  drawer  sev- 
eral things  wrapped  up  in  a  newspaper. 

"  I  am  going  down  to  see  the  squire,"  he  said, 
to  the  constable.  "  You  can  come  along,  if  you 
want  to." 

"  What  was  in  the  letter?  " 

"  The  names  of  the  rascals  who  blew  up  my 
hotel." 

"  What !    You  don't  mean  it,  Jason !  " 

"  Yes,  I  do." 

"Who  sent  the  letter?" 

"  That's  a  secret.  But  come  on,  we'll  talk  it 
over  with  Squire  Thompson.  Ain't  no  time  to 
waste."  And  then  the  hotel  man  went  off  to  in- 
terview the  leading  legal  light  of  the  town. 

The  conference  at  the  squire's  office  lasted  the 
best  part  of  two  hours.  At  this  Jason  Sparr  pro- 
duced the  contents  of  the  package,  several  things 
picked  up  near  the  hotel  at  the  time  of  the  ex- 
plosion— a  tan  glove,  somewhat  worn,  two  iron 
rings,  an  empty  paper  box  marked,  "  L."  in  one 


A  SERIOUS  ACCUSATION  167 

corner,  a  whip  handle,  and  a  clock-like  contrivance 
which  had  been  used  to  set  off  the  dynamite.  He 
told  of  his  trouble  with  Phil  and  his  chums,  of  the 
threats  made,  and  produced  the  letter  received 
so  mysteriously. 

"  Looks  kind  of  plain  to  me,  Squire,"  he  said. 
"  Don't  you  think  so?  " 

"  It  isn't  for  me  to  say,"  replied  the  squire,  cau- 
tiously. "  But  if  you  want  to  swear  out  warrants 
for  those  boys'  arrest " 

"Ain't  I  justified?" 

"  Sure  you  are,"  put  in  the  constable,  who  hap- 
pened to  be  the  squire's  brother-in-law.  "  I 
wouldn't  waste  no  time  on  it."  He  thought  he 
saw  in  this  a  job  for  himself,  with  some  fat 
fees. 

"  If  you  have  them  arrested,  you've  got  to 
prove  your  case,"  said  Squire  Thompson,  slowly. 
"  It's  a  serious  business,  Sparr." 

"  But  this  letter  says  they  are  guilty." 

"  Lock  'em  up  and  make  'em  confess!  "  broke 
in  the  constable.  "  Give  'em  the  third  degree!  " 
he  added.  He  had  read  something  of  how  city 
criminals  were  occasionally  treated  and  he  wished 
to  air  his  knowledge. 

"I'll  do  it!"  cried  Jason  Spar.  "I'll  show 
'em  they  can't  insult  me  and  take  away  my  trade 
and  then  try  to  blow  up  my  hotel !  I'll  have  'em 
all  locked  up!     Then  we  can  examine  'em  one  by 


168      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

one,  and  get  'em  tangled  up  and  make  'em  con- 
fess." 

After  much  trouble,  the  warrants  for  the  arrest 
of  Phil,  Ben,  Dave,  Roger,  and  Buster  were  made 
out.  The  constable  wanted  to  serve  them  at 
once,  but  it  was  decided  at  the  last  moment  to 
wait  until  the  next  morning,  to  see  if  any  new 
evidence  regarding  the  crime  might  be  forth- 
coming. 

The  constable  went  home,  sworn  to  secrecy, 
but  he  had  to  tell  his  wife  and  her  sister  of  the 
affair,  and  the  news  got  to  the  ears  of  a  man  who 
boarded  with  them.  This  fellow,  who  was  named 
Andy  Prime,  chanced  to  know  Dave  quite  well, 
our  hero  having  once  done  him  a  favor.  Early 
in  the  morning  Prime  drove  past  the  school,  and 
seeing  Dave  on  the  campus,  hailed  him. 

"  Come  over  here,  I  want  to  tell  you  some- 
thing, Porter,"  said  Prime,  mysteriously. 

"What  do  you  want?"  asked  Dave,  good- 
naturedly. 

"  Ride  a  bit  with  me,  will  you?  I  don't  want 
nobody  to  hear  us,"  went  on  the  man,  lowering 
his  voice. 

Wondering  what  was  coming,  Dave  got  up  on 
the  seat  of  the  man's  wagon  and  they  drove  to 
the  far  end  of  the  Oak  Hall  grounds.  There 
Andy  Prime  told  of  all  he  had  learned. 

"  Please  don't  say  I  told  ye !  "  he  pleaded.    "  It 


A  SERIOUS  ACCUSATION  169 

might  git  me  in  trouble.  But  you  did  me  a  good 
turn  onct  an'  I  ain't  forgot  it." 

"  Thank  you,  Prime,  I  won't  tell  who  told  me," 
answered  Dave. 

"  Thet  old  skinflint  o'  a  Sparr  deserved  to  have 
his  buildin'  blown  up." 

"  Perhaps.  But  we  didn't  do  it,  I  can  assure 
you  of  that.  If  Mr.  Sparr  has  us  arrested,  he'll 
get  in  hot  water,"  answered  our  hero;  and  then 
he  got  out  of  the  wagon  and  Andy  Prime 
drove  on. 

Dave  at  once  carried  the  news  to  those  imme- 
diately concerned.  All  were  very  indignant,  and 
some  were  scared. 

"  Say,  I  won't  stand  for  being  arrested!  "  cried 
Phil,  in  horror.     "  It's  too  much  of  a  disgrace!  " 

"  My  folks  would  never  get  over  it,"  added 
Ben. 

"  It  would  just  about  kill  my  mother,  if  I  was 
locked  up,"  came  from  Buster. 

"  Well,  I'll  stand  it  if  I  have  to,"  said  Roger. 
"  But  I'll  make  that  fellow  suffer  for  it  later!  " 
he  added,  bitterly. 

All  thoughts  of  going  to  school  that  morning 
were  abandoned  by  the  live  boys.  They  talked  the 
situation  over,  and  determined  to  go  down  the 
road  and  await  the  arrival  of  the  constable,  Andy 
Prime  having  said  that  Hickson  would  come  by 
ten  o'clock. 


170      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

"This  is  awful!"  gasped  Phil,  shaking  his 
head  dolefully.     "  Say,  Dave,  I  can't  stand  it!  " 

"  Wait  until  we  hear  what  the  constable  has  to 
say." 

"  He  won't  say  anything — he'll  just  drag  us 
to  the  Oakdale  lockup!  "  put  in  Ben. 

"  I  wonder  what  my  dad  will  say  to  that,  when 
he  hears  of  it?  "  murmured  Roger.  "  The  news- 
papers are  bound  to  make  a  spread  of  it.  '  Son  of 
a  U.  S.  Senator  Jailed  for  Blowing  Up  a  Hotel!  ' 
or  something  like  that.    Oh,  it  makes  me  sick !  " 

Plainly  the  majority  of  the  students  were  very 
nervous.  The  only  one  who  kept  calm  was  Dave, 
and  even  he  was  much  disturbed.  All  walked 
along  the  road,  keeping  a  sharp  eye  out  for  the 
appearance  of  Paul  Hickson. 

"Here  he  comes!"  cried  Phil,  as  a  covered 
wagon  came  along  the  road,  driven  by  the  keeper 
of  the  Oakdale  jail.  On  the  front  seat  beside  the 
driver  were  the  constable  and  Jason  Sparr. 

"  Hi,  you  boys!  "  shouted  the  constable,  as  the 
wagon  came  closer.     "  I  want  to  see  you!  " 

"What  do  you  want?"  demanded  Dave,  step- 
ping to  the  front. 

"  We  want  you,  for  one !  "  cried  the  hotel- 
keeper.  "  Be  careful,  Hickson,  that  none  of  'em 
get  away!"  he  added. 

"  I  don't  know  one  from  tudder,"  said  the  con- 
stable, doubtfully. 


A  SERIOUS  ACCUSATION  171 

"  This  is  just  the  bunch  we  are  after,  unless  I 
am  mistaken,"  went  on  the  hotel  man.  "  That  is 
Lawrence  there,  and  Basswood,  and  this  is  Por- 
ter, and  I  think  that  is  Morr,"  and  he  pointed  to 
the  various  students. 

"  Good  enough.  Boys,  in  the  name  of  the  law, 
I  call  on  you  to  halt,"  declared  the  constable, 
pompously. 

"  Mr.  Sparr,  what  does  this  mean?  "  demanded 
Dave. 

"  It  means  that  I  am  going  to  have  the  whole 
bunch  of  you  arrested!  "  shouted  the  hotel  man, 
harshly.  "  You  blew  up  my  hotel,  and  I  can 
prove  it!  I've  got  the  evidence  against  every 
one  of  you !  I  am  going  to  have  you  arrested 
right  now  and  sent  to  prison !  "  And  he  shook  his 
fist  at  the  boys. 

"  The  evidence  against  us?  "  faltered  Phil. 

"  Yes,  sir,  the  plain,  clear  evidence,"  went  on 
the  hotel-keeper,  dramatically.  "  I've  got  you 
just  where  I  want  you.  I  am  going  to  send  every 
one  of  you  to  prison  for  five  or  ten  years!  " 


CHAPTER  XVIII 

THE  MEETING  ON  THE  ROAD 

There  was  an  intense  silence,  following  the 
announcement  of  Jason  Sparr  that  he  intended  to 
send  Dave  and  his  chums  to  prison  for  attempting 
to  blow  up  the  hotel.  In  the  meantime  the  hotel 
man  and  the  constable  got  down  from  the  seat  of 
the  covered  wagon. 

"  I've  got  the  warrants  fer  the  arrest,  boys," 
said  Constable  Hickson,  somewhat  importantly. 

"  Mr.  Sparr,  I'd  like  a  word  with  you,"  said 
Dave,  as  calmly  as  he  could  speak  under  the  cir- 
cumstances. 

"  I  ain't  got  no  more  to  say  than  I've  said," 
returned  Jason  Sparr,  stubbornly.  "  You  done 
it,  and  I  can  prove  it!  The  constable  is  going 
to  do  his  duty  and  arrest  you !  " 

"Dave,  I — I  won't  stand  for  it!"  whispered 
Phil,  hoarsely.  "It's  terrible!  I — I  can't  stand 
it!  "     And  he  began  to  back  away. 

"Hi,  there!  stop!"  yelled  the  hotel  man. 
"  Stop  him,  Hickson!     Don't  let  him  get  away!  " 

"  You  sha'n't  arrest  me  for  nothing!  "  cried  the 
172 


THE  MEETING  ON  THE  ROAD         173 

shipowner's  son,  and  like  a  flash  he  turned  around 
and  started  off  on  a  run. 

"Come  back  here,  Phil!"  called  out  Dave. 
"  Come  back!  You  are  making  a  mistake  by  run- 
ning away!  " 

But  Phil  did  not  hear,  nor  did  Ben  and  Buster, 
who  had  also  taken  to  their  heels.  Roger  ran  a 
few  steps,  then  halted,  and  came  back  to  our  hero's 
side. 

"  You  are  right,  Dave,"  he  said.  "  It's  best 
to  face  the  music." 

Phil,  Ben,  and  Buster  had  turned  towards  Oak 
Hall.  Phil  was  in  the  lead,  but  the  others  soon 
caught  up  to  him. 

"Wha — what  are  you  go — going  to  d — do?" 
panted  Ben. 

"  I'm  not  going  to  let  them  arrest  me!  "  an- 
swered Phil.  "  I  didn't  do  it,  and  I'm  not  going 
to  jail." 

"  Let  us  hide  until  we  can  get  our  folks  to 
help  us,"  suggested  Buster.  The  thought  of  going 
to  a  lockup  filled  him  with  dread. 

"  I'm  going  to  notify  my  folks,  too,"  said 
Ben. 

"  The  trouble  is,  I  don't  know  where  my  folks 
are  just  now,"  came  from  the  shipowner's  son. 
"  My  father  went  on  a  trip  on  one  of  his  ves- 
sels and  mother  is  visiting  relatives." 

The  boys  had  kept  on  running  on  the  road. 


174      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

But  now,  as  they  saw  the  constable  after  them, 
they  turned  and  dashed  into  a  side-path  leading 
to  the  river. 

"A  motor-boat!"  cried  Ben,  a  few  seconds 
later. 

"  It's  the  Kingsley  boat,"  added  Buster.  "  I 
know  Tom  will  let  us  use  it — he  said  I  could  do 
it  once.    Let  us  go  across  in  it." 

All  leaped  on  board,  and  Ben  started  up  the 
engine  while  Buster  took  the  wheel.  There  came 
a  put !  put !  as  the  fly-wheel  was  turned  over,  and 
the  little  craft,  which  belonged  to  a  boy  living 
on  the  river-bank,  headed  out  into  the  Leming 
River. 

In  the  meantime,  while  Constable  Hickson  was 
running  after  the  fugitives,  Jason  Sparr  and  the 
driver  of  the  covered  wagon  confronted  Dave  and 
Roger. 

"Don't  you  try  to  run!"  bawled  the  hotel- 
keeper. 

"  I'm  armed,"  added  the  keeper  of  the  town 
lockup,  suggestively. 

"  I  don't  intend  to  run,  Mr.  Sparr,"  answered 
Dave. 

"  Why  should  we  run,  since  we  have  done  noth- 
ing wrong?  "  added  the  senator's  son.  He  tried 
to  follow  Dave's  example  and  remain  calm,  but 
he  was  tremendously  disturbed. 

"  Did  those  three  fellows  do  it  alone?  "  queried 


THE  MEETING  ON  THE  ROAD         175 

the  hotel  man,  eagerly.  "  If  they  did,  you  had 
better  confess  to  it,  and  clear  yourselves." 

"  None  of  us  are  guilty,"  answered  Dave. 

"  I  know  better." 

"  You  do  not.  Since  we  didn't  do  it,  Mr.  Sparr, 
I  don't  see  how  you  can  prove  that  we  did, — 
unless  you  have  manufactured  some  evidence 
against  us,"  went  on  our  hero,  pointedly,  a  new 
idea  coming  into  his  head. 

"  I  ain't  manufactured  no  evidence!  "  bawled 
Jason  Sparr.  "  Didn't  that  young  rascal  of  a 
Lawrence  say  he'd  get  square  with  me,  and  didn't 
all  of  you  say  the  same  ?  Wasn't  you  down  to  the 
blowing  up  of  the  bridge,  right  where  they  had 
all  that  dynamite  stored?  Wasn't  some  of  the 
dynamite  sticks  stolen?  Didn't  you  fellows  come 
right  by  the  hotel  afterwards?  Wasn't  the 
blowing  up  done  by  clockwork,  made  to  go 
off  hours  after  it  was  set?  You  can't  tell 
me!  You  are  guilty.  Besides,  I  got  other  evi- 
dence— I  got  a  letter,"  added  the  hotel-keeper, 
shrewdly. 

"A  letter?    About  us?" 

Jason  Sparr  nodded. 

"  Saying  we  were  guilty?  " 

11  Yes." 

"Who  wrote  it?" 

"  Never  mind  that.  You're  guilty,  and  you 
know  it.     Just  wait  till  Hickson  comes  back  with 


176      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

them  others  and  I'll  show  you  a  thing  or  two," 
continued  the  hotel  man,  harshly. 

"  Mr.  Sparr,  I  said  I  wanted  to  talk  to  you, 
and  I  do  want  to,"  said  Dave,  after  a  pause. 
"  You  will  find  it  to  your  advantage  to  listen 
to  me.  You  have  got  this  whole  thing  settled  in 
your  own  mind,  but  you  are  dead  wrong.  You 
intend  to  have  us  locked  up  for  something  we 
didn't  do.  To  have  us  locked  up  will  blacken  our 
characters  and  blacken  the  reputation  of  Oak 
Hall.  My  folks  are  respectable  people,  and  so 
are  the  folks  of  the  other  boys.  Do  you  think 
they  will  stand  for  this  sort  of  thing?  And  do  you 
think  Doctor  Clay  will  stand  for  it?  If  you  do, 
you  are  greatly  mistaken.  If  you  have  us  arrested 
on  this  charge,  which  is  absolutely  false,  I'll  get 
my  folks  to  sue  you  for  false  imprisonment  and 
defamation  of  character,  and  I  know  the  other 
fellows  will  do  the  same.  And  you  can  rest  as- 
sured that  the  charges  against  you  will  be  pushed 
to  the  limits  of  the  law." 

At  this  plain  talk  Jason  Sparr's  jaw  dropped. 
Several  times  he  was  on  the  point  of  interrupting, 
but  thought  better  of  it. 

"  Well,    now — er "    he    stammered    when 

Dave  had  finished. 

"  My  father  is  a  United  States  senator,"  said 
Roger.  "  You  don't  suppose  he  will  let  a  matter 
like  this  pass  unnoticed?     If  you  do  anything  to 


THE  MEETING  ON  THE  ROAD        177 

besmirch  our  family  name,  you'll  take  the  con- 
sequences." 

"  Your  father  is  a  United  States  senator?  "  fal- 
tered Jason  Sparr. 

"  He  is,  and  Dave's  father  is  a  rich  man,  and 
so  is  Phil  Lawrence's  father.  Of  course,  our 
money  has  nothing  to  do  with  it,  excepting  that  it 
will  enable  us  to  stand  up  for  our  rights  in  the 
courts,  and  get  able  lawyers  to  defend  us.  We 
are  innocent  of  all  wrongdoing.  If  anybody  is 
in  the  wrong  it  is  you,  for  you  cheated  Phil  Law- 
rence out  of  the  money  he  advanced  to  you  for 
that  spread  we  were  to  have  at  your  hotel." 

"  Cheated  him!  "  cried  the  hotel-keeper. 

"  That  is  what  it  amounted  to,  for  you  took  his 
money  and  gave  him  nothing  in  return." 

"  He  called  the  spread  off " 

"  He  did  not,  and  we  can  prove  it,"  said  Dave, 
following  up  what  he  thought  looked  like  an  ad- 
vantage. "  Why,  if  he  wanted  to  do  it,  Phil  could 
have  you  locked  up  for  swindling." 

"What,  me?  Locked  up?"  cried  the  hotel 
man. 

"  Certainly.  Why  not?  It's  as  reasonable  as 
your  charge  against  us — more  reasonable,  in  fact, 
for  you  kept  his  money  and  gave  him  nothing  in 
return,"  went  on  our  hero,  warmly. 

"Well,  now  what  do  you  know  about  that?" 
grumbled  Jason  Sparr,  turning  to  the  driver  of 


178      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

the  covered  wagon.  But  the  lockup  man  merely 
shrugged  his  shoulders.  Privately  he  was  of  the 
opinion  that  the  boys  were  not  such  rascals  as  had 
been  pictured. 

"  If  those  fellows  wasn't  guilty,  why  did  they 
run  away?  "  continued  Jason  Sparr,  after  an  awk- 
ward pause. 

"  Because  you  scared  them,"  responded  Roger. 
"  I  would  have  run  away  myself  if  it  hadn't  been 
for  Dave." 

"Humph!" 

All  looked  along  the  road.  Constable  Hick- 
son  had  disappeared,  having  followed  the  run- 
aways down  to  the  river.  Presently  he  came  back, 
out  of  breath  from  his  exertions. 

"  Did  you  get  'em?  "  queried  the  hotel-keeper, 
eagerly. 

"  No,  they  got  away  in  a  motor-boat." 

"A  motor-boat!  "  repeated  Dave  and  Roger, 
and  looked  at  each  other  in  astonishment. 

"  Yes,  went  up  the  river  out  of  sight,"  said 
Paul  Hickson.  "  Too  bad !  But  we've  got  two  of 
'em,  anyway,"  he  added,  looking  at  our  hero  and 
the  senator's  son. 

"  I  wanted  Lawrence  more  than  I  did  the 
others,"  grumbled  Jason  Sparr.  He  was  doing 
some  deep  thinking  and  his  face  showed  that  he 
was  much  disturbed. 

"  Mr.  Sparr,  just  remember  what  I  said,"  re- 


THE  MEETING  ON  THE  ROAD         179 

marked  Dave,  pointedly.  "  If  you  go  ahead,  take 
my  word  for  it,  it  will  cost  you  dear." 

"  Say,  Hickson,  we'll  drop  this  matter  for 
the  present,"  said  the  hotel-keeper,  in  a  low 
tone. 

"  Drop  it?  "  ejaculated  the  constable.  "  Ain't 
you  goin'  to  have  these  two  took  up?" 

"  Not  just  now.  I — er — I  want  to  get  more 
evidence  first,  if  I  can.  We  can  get  them  any 
time  we  want  them." 

"  But  who  is  going  to  pay  me  for  my  trouble? 
I've  got  them  warrants  to  serve  right  in  my 
pocket,  and " 

"  I'll  fix  that  up  with  you,"  answered  the  hotel 
man,  in  a  whisper.  "  Come  on.  We  can  come 
back  later."  And  then  the  hotel  man  said  some- 
thing to  the  driver  of  the  wagon.  The  latter 
merely  nodded  and  got  back  to  his  seat.  Jason 
Sparr  climbed  up  beside  him,  and  the  constable 
slowly  followed. 

"  I  don't  understand "  went  on  the  con- 
stable; but  Jason  Sparr  merely  pinched  his  arm, 
and  he  stopped  short. 

"Just  remember,  this  ain't  settled  yet!  "  cried 
the  hotel-keeper,  to  Dave  and  Roger.  "  I'm  going 
to  look  into  it  a  bit  deeper  before  I  make  a  move, 
that's  all.  I  know  some  of  you  done  it,  and 
I'll  have  you  in  prison  for  it  yet,  see  if  I  don't!  " 
And  he  shook  his  head  grimly;  and  then  the  cov- 


180      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

ered  wagon  was  turned  around,  and  the  three 
men  drove  off  in  the  direction  of  Oakdale. 

"  Oh,  Dave,  do  you  think  they'll  come  back?  " 
cried  Roger,  when  the  men  were  out  of  hearing. 

"  There  is  no  telling  what  they  will  do,  Roger. 
But  you  can  make  up  your  mind  to  one  thing — 
Sparr  won't  come  back  until  he  has  more  evidence 
than  he  has  at  present." 

"  But  how  can  he  get  evidence?  Surely  you 
don't  think.  Phil  and.  the  others  guilty,  even  if  they 
did  run  away." 

"  No,  I  think  Phil  and  the  others  are  as  inno- 
cent as  we  are.  But  I  can't  understand  some 
things.  Somebody  used  that  dynamite  and  some- 
body wrote  a  letter  to  Sparr  about  us.  The  ques- 
tion is,  Who  was  it?  " 

"Could  it  be  Nat  Poole?" 

"  I  don't  think  Nat  would  be  bad  enough  to 
try  to  blow  up  a  hotel." 

"  It  certainly  was  an  awful  thing  to  do." 
Roger  drew  a  long  breath.  "  What  shall  we  do 
now,  go  back  to  school?  " 

"  We  might  as  well.  If  we  don't,  old  Has- 
kers  will  be  after  us  again." 

"  Do  you  think  Phil  and  the  others  will  come 
back?" 

"Why  not?  As  soon  as  they  have  time  to 
think  it  over  they'll  realize  it  is  best  to  face  the 
music,"  answered  Dave. 


THE  MEETING  ON  THE  ROAD         181 

He  and  Roger  returned  to  Oak  Hall.  They 
had  missed  one  class,  but  fortunately  that  was  one 
presided  over  by  Mr.  Dale,  and  he  readily  ex- 
cused them  when  they  said  they  had  had  some 
personal  matters  of  importance  to  attend  to,  and 
would  explain  later. 

"  It  is  bound  to  come  out,  sooner  or  later," 
said  Dave  to  his  chum.  "  So  we  might  as  well 
take  Doctor  Clay  and  Mr.  Dale  into  our  con- 
fidence." 

"  I  suppose  you  are  right,"  answered  the  sena- 
tor's son.  Nevertheless,  he  heaved  a  deep  sigh, 
as  he  thought  of  what  might  be  the  outcome  of 
the  trouble.  What  if,  after  all,  Jason  Sparr 
should  concoct  some  sort  of  evidence  against  them 
and  send  them  all  to  prison? 


CHAPTER  XIX 

LOOKING  FOR  THE  RUNAWAYS 

When  Dave  and  Roger  went  to  the  midday 
meal  in  the  dining-room  they  looked  all  over  for 
Phil,  Ben,  and  Buster,  but  the  three  were  not  in 
sight. 

"  Dave,  they  haven't  come  back  yet." 

"  So  I  see,"  returned  our  hero,  and  he  was 
much  disturbed.  He  ate  sparingly,  and  the  sena- 
tor's son  also  had  but  little  appetite  for  the 
meal. 

"Say,  what's  become  of  those  chaps?"  ques- 
tioned Shadow. 

"  I'll  tell  you  later,"  answered  Dave.  "  Don't 
say  anything  now — and  tell  the  others  to  keep 
quiet,  too." 

But  such  a  happening  could  not  be  kept  quiet, 
and  soon  it  was  whispered  around  that  Phil,  Ben, 
and  Buster  were  missing.  This  presently  got  to 
the  ears  of  Andrew  Dale,  and  the  head  assistant 
teacher  sought  out  Dave  for  an  explanation. 

"  I  understand  you  went  out  with  Lawrence, 
Basswood,  and  Beggs  this  morning,  Porter,"  said 


LOOKING  FOR  THE  RUNAWAYS       183 

the  teacher.  "  They  are  not  yet  back.  Do  you 
know  where  they  went?  " 

"  They  went  off  in  a  motor-boat,  that  is  all  I 
know  about  that  part  of  it,  Mr.  Dale.  Roger 
Morr  and  I  would  like  to  speak  to  you  and  Doctor 
Clay  in  private.  It  is  very  important,"  went  on 
our  hero. 

"  Very  well.  Come  at  once  to  the  office  and  I 
will  call  the  doctor." 

A  little  later  found  the  two  youths  in  the  office 
with  Doctor  Clay  and  his  head  assistant.  There, 
as  briefly  as  he  could,  Dave  told  his  story,  and 
Roger  corroborated  what  was  said.  The  head  of 
the  school  was  deeply  interested  and  not  a  little 
alarmed. 

"  This  is  certainly  serious,"  he  declared,  with 
a  grave  shake  of  his  head.  "  It  reflects  not  only 
on  you  but  on  this  school.  I  must  look  into  this 
at  once."  And  then  he  asked  many  questions,  and 
Andrew  Dale  did  the  same. 

"  Running  away  makes  it  look  bad  for  Law- 
rence, Beggs,  and  Basswood,"  remarked  Mr. 
Dale.  "  They  should  have  stood  their  ground,  as 
Morr  and  Porter  did." 

"  That  hotel  man  and  the  constable  probably 
scared  them  so  they  did  not  know  what  they 
were  doing,"  returned  Doctor  Clay.  He  turned 
to  the  boys.  "  You  have  no  idea  where  they 
went?  " 


184      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

"  No,  sir,  excepting  that  they  went  up  the  river 
in  the  Kingsley  motor-boat.  They  know  Tom 
Kingsley  quite  well  and  he  lets  them  use  the  boat 
once  in  a  while." 

"  Do  you  think  you  could  find  them,  if  I  let  you 
off  to  do  so?  " 

"  We  could  try,  sir." 

"  Then  you  may  go  at  once.  Tell  them  it  was 
very  foolish  to  run  away,  and  urge  them  to  come 
back  at  once,"  added  Doctor  Clay. 

A  little  more  conversation  followed,  and  then 
Dave  and  Roger  left  the  office  and  started  on 
the  search  for  the  runaways. 

"  We  ought  to  have  a  motor-boat  ourselves, 
to  follow  them  up  the  river — that  is,  if  they  went 
any  distance,"  said  the  senator's  son. 

"  We  might  try  to  borrow  one,  Roger." 

"  Not  Nat  Poole's — he  wouldn't  lend  it  to 
us." 

"  I  know  that." 

The  two  students  walked  to  the  river  and 
looked  up  and  down  the  stream.  A  rowboat  and 
a  sailboat  were  in  sight,  but  that  was  all. 

"  There  is  Jack  Laplow  in  his  sloop,"  cried 
Dave,  mentioning  a  riverman  they  knew.  "  The 
wind  is  blowing  up  the  stream.  Maybe  he'll  take 
us  along." 

They  hailed  the  riverman,  who  made  a  living 
by  doing  all  sorts  of  jobs  on  the  stream.    He  did 


LOOKING  FOR  THE  RUNAWAYS       185 

not  have  much  to  do  just  then  and  readily  agreed, 
for  a  small  amount,  to  take  them  up  the  river 
and  bring  them  back. 

11  We  want  to  find  some  fellows  who  are  in  the 
Kingsley  motor-boat,"  explained  Dave.  "  Have 
you  seen  anything  of  them?  " 

The  riverman  had  not,  but  said  he  would  help 
to  watch  out  for  the  lads.  Dave  and  Roger 
hopped  aboard  the  sloop,  and  soon  the  little  craft 
was  standing  up  the  Leming  River,  with  Jack 
Laplow  at  the  tiller. 

It  was  a  warm,  clear  day,  and  had  the  boys 
not  been  distressed  in  mind,  they  would  have 
enjoyed  the  sail  immensely.  But  as  it  was,  they 
were  very  sober,  so  much  so  in  fact  that  the  old 
riverman  at  length  remarked: 

"  What's  wrong — somebody  hurt,  or  are  ye 
going  to  a  funeral?  " 

"  No  funeral,"  answered  Dave,  with  a  forced 
laugh.  "  But  we  are  in  a  hurry  to  find  those  three 
fellows." 

"  Well,  I  don't  see  no  motor-boat  yet,"  an- 
swered Jack  Laplow. 

"  One  thing  is  certain:  if  it  went  up  the  river 
it's  got  to  come  down,"  said  Roger. 

"  They  may  get  out  and  send  it  back,"  an- 
swered our  hero. 

"  But,  Dave,  surely  you  don't  think "     But 

Dave  put  up  his  hand  for  silence  and  nodded  in 


1 86   DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

the  direction  of  the  boatman;  and  the  senator's 
son  said  no  more. 

A  mile  and  a  half  were  covered,  and  they  were 
just  passing  one  of  the  many  islands  in  the  river, 
when  Jack  Laplow  gave  a  shout. 

"There  is  the  motor-boat  now!  " 

"  Boat  ahoy!  "  shouted  Dave,  and  then,  as  they 
drew  closer,  he  saw  that  it  was  really  the  Kingsley 
craft.  He  was  chagrined  to  see  that  only  a  man 
was  on  board,  a  fellow  who  was  running  the  boat 
very  slowly. 

"Where  are  those  boys  who  were  aboard?" 
demanded  our  hero,  as  the  motor-boat  came 
closer. 

"  Is  this  your  boat?  "  asked  the  man  on  board, 
in  return. 

"  No,  but  my  friends  were  on  that  boat. 
Where  are  they?  " 

"  Left  the  boat  at  Snog's  Point,  and  hired 
me  to  bring  her  back.  I  don't  know  much  about 
motor-boats,  so  I'm  running  kind  o'  slow,"  ex- 
plained the  man. 

"  Snog's  Point?"  repeated  Roger.  "Where 
were  they  going?  " 

"  Don't  ask  me,  for  I  don't  know.  They  was 
in  a  tremenjous  hurry,  I  know  that.  It's  all  right, 
ain't  it?  "  went  on  the  man,  quickly. 

"  Oh,  yes,  it  was  all  right,"  answered  Dave. 
And  then  they  allowed  the  man  to  go  on  his  way. 


;  There  is  the  motor-boat  now  !  ' ' — Page  186. 


LOOKING  FOR  THE  RUNAWAYS       187 

"Want  to  go  up  to  Snog's  Point?  "  asked  the 
man  of  the  sloop. 

"  Yes, — and  as  quickly  as  you  can  get  there," 
replied  Dave. 

As  the  wind  was  in  the  right  direction,  it  did 
not  take  long.  The  Point  was  a  rocky  cliff  with 
a  stretch  of  sand  at  its  base.  Here  the  boys 
jumped  ashore. 

"  Want  me  to  wait  for  you?  "  asked  the  river- 
man. 

"  Wait  for  half  an  hour,"  said  Dave.  "  Then, 
if  we  are  not  back,  you  can  go  back;"  and  so  it 
was  arranged. 

In  the  sand  our  hero  and  Roger  could  plainly 
see  the  marks  of  the  motor-boat  and  many  foot- 
prints. They  followed  the  footprints  to  a  road 
leading  through  a  stretch  of  woods,  and  then 
came  out  on  a  highway  leading  to  Barrelton. 

"  The  town  is  about  half  a  mile  from  here. 
Wonder  if  they  went  there?  "  mused  Roger. 

"  Maybe  we  can  learn  something  at  the  nearest 
farmhouse,"  suggested  Dave. 

They  hurried  on,  and  presently  reached  a  farm- 
house set  close  to  the  road,  with  a  barn  on  the 
other  side.  At  a  grindstone  a  tall,  thin  boy  was 
sharpening  a  sickle. 

"  Yes,  I  saw  them  fellers,"  he  drawled,  when 
asked  about  the  runaways.  "  They  was  walking 
to  town  to  beat  the  cars.    I  thought  they  must  be 


188      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

in  one  o'  them  cross-country  races,  or  something 
like  that." 

"  Come  on !  "  cried  Dave  to  his  chum.  Then 
he  turned  back  suddenly.  "  Do  you  know  any- 
thing about  the  trains  from  Barrelton?  " 

"  Ain't  many  trains  from  there,"  answered  the 
youth  at  the  grindstone. 

"  But  do  you  know  what  there  are?  " 

"  There's  a  train  north  jest  about  due  now." 

"And  what  is  next?  " 

"  A  train  south  a  leetle  after  four  o'clock.  An' 
the  freight  goes  through  at  seven." 

"  Hurry,  Roger!  "  cried  Dave. 

"Do  you  think  they'd  take  a  train,  Dave?" 

"  I  don't  know — I  hope  not." 

The  two  boys  set  off  on  a  run,  taking  it  easy 
at  first,  so  as  not  to  get  winded.  They  passed 
a  number  of  farms  and  presently  came  in  sight 
of  Barrelton,  so  called  because  of  the  barrel  fac- 
tory located  there.  From  a  distance  they  had 
heard  the  whistle  of  a  locomotive,  and  knew  that 
the  north-bound  train  had  stopped  at  the  sta- 
tion and  gone  on. 

"There  is  the  station!  "  cried  Dave,  pointing 
up  the  railroad  tracks.  They  continued  to  run 
and  did  not  stop  until  they  gained  the  platform. 
Here  they  met  the  ticket  agent. 

"  The  train  just  went,  didn't  it?  "  asked  Dave, 


LOOKING  FOR  THE  RUNAWAYS       189 

and  as  the  agent  nodded,  he  went  on:  "  Did  three 
young  fellows  like  ourselves  get  on?  " 

"  If  they  did,  I  didn't  see  'em,"  answered  the 
man. 

"  Oh  I  "  cried  Roger,  "  maybe  they  didn't  take 
the  train,  after  all." 

"  Let  us  hope  so." 

Somewhat  out  of  breath,  the  two  boys  tramped 
around  Barrelton,  looking  for  Phil  and  the  others, 
and  asking  about  them.  But  nobody  appeared  to 
have  seen  the  runaways,  and  not  a  trace  of  them 
was  to  be  found  anywhere. 

"  All  we  can  do  is  to  get  something  to  eat  and 
take  the  other  train  for  Oakdale,"  said  Roger, 
after  they  had  satisfied  themselves  that  the  run- 
aways were  nowhere  in  that  vicinity.  The  walk- 
ing around  had  made  him  hungry. 

They  procured  some  pie  and  milk  at  a  little 
stand  near  the  station,  and  shortly  after  four 
o'clock  took  the  way  train  for  Oakdale  and  walked 
to  the  school.  They  went  directly  to  the  doctor's 
office.  The  master  of  Oak  Hall  listened  patiently 
to  what  they  had  to  tell. 

"  I  am  sorry  you  did  not  find  them,"  he  said, 
gravely.  u  It  was  very  foolish  of  them  to  run 
away,  very.  I  trust  they  will  come  back  of  their 
own  accord  soon." 

"  Will  you  see  Mr.  Sparr  about  the  matter?  " 
asked  Dave. 


igo      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

"  Yes,  Porter.  And  I  wish  you  and  Morr  to 
go  with  me." 

The  interview  took  place  that  evening,  the  boys 
and  the  doctor  driving  down  to  the  hotel  after 
supper.  Jason  Sparr  treated  the  master  of  the 
Hall  politely  but  said  very  little. 

"  When  I  make  my  next  move  I'll  have  a  law- 
yer," he  said.  "  I  know  somebody  tried  to  blow 
up  my  hotel,  and  I  think  it  was  some  of  your  boys 
— that  Lawrence  boy  especially.  But  I  ain't  going 
to  have  'em  arrested  until  I  can  prove  it." 

"  Very  well,"  answered  Doctor  Clay.  "  And 
in  the  meantime,  you  had  better  keep  quiet,  or 
you  may  have  a  suit  for  damages  on  hand." 

On  the  day  following  there  was  something  of  a 
sensation.  The  weekly  newspaper  issued  in  a 
nearby  town  came  out  with  a  thrilling  account  of 
the  dynamiting  of  the  dining-room  of  the  hotel. 
In  the  account  appeared  the  following: 


"  There  is  strong  evidence  pointing  to  the  fact 
that  the  outrageous  deed  was  perpetrated  by  some 
schoolboys  who  held  a  grudge  against  Mr.  Sparr. 
They  are  known  to  have  been  present  at  the  blow- 
ing up  of  the  old  stone  bridge,  and  were  seen  near 
the  shanty  where  the  sticks  of  dynamite  were  kept, 
and  one  boy  of  the  town  says  he  saw  a  young  man 
coming  from  the  shanty  with  something  in  his 
hand.  Mr.  Sparr  has  the  authorities  at  work  and 
is  piling  up  his  evidence,  and  the  arrest  of  the 


LOOKING  FOR  THE  RUNAWAYS       191 

rascally  schoolboys  may  be  hourly  expected.  It  is 
said  that  some  of  the  boys  have  run  away,  but  the 
authorities  have  an  idea  where  they  can  be  lo- 
cated. The  town  committee  is  thinking  of  offer- 
ing a  reward  for  the  capture  and  conviction  of 
the  rascals.  For  the  safety  of  our  citizens,  the 
Weekly  Globe-Leader  hopes  the  evil-doers  will 
soon  be  apprehended." 

No  names  were  mentioned  in  this  account,  but 
everybody  in  Oakdale  and  vicinity  knew  that  the 
boys  of  Oak  Hall  were  alluded  to,  and  there  was 
much  talk  over  what  might  be  done.  Doctor  Clay 
felt  the  disgrace  keenly,  and  Dave  and  Roger  were 
equally  affected. 

"What  are  we  going  to  do,  Dave?"  asked 
the  senator's  son. 

"  I  don't  know,"  returned  our  hero.  "  But 
we've  got  to  do  something,  that's  certain." 


CHAPTER  XX 

THE   WILD   MAN   AGAIN 

"  Roger,  I  have  an  idea !  " 

"What  is  it,  Dave?" 

"  I  may  be  mistaken,  but  I've  been  thinking 
that  perhaps  that  wild  man  did  the  blowing  up 
at  the  hotel." 

"  What  makes  you  think  that?  "  questioned  the 
senator's  son,  putting  down  the  book  he  had  been 
trying  to  study. 

A  day  had  passed  after  the  events  recorded 
in  the  last  chapter,  and  so  far  no  word  had  come 
in  concerning  Phil  and  the  other  runaways.  Doc- 
tor Clay  had  sent  for  a  private  detective  to  assist 
in  locating  them  and  also  to  try,  if  possible,  to 
clear  up  the  mystery  concerning  the  hotel  affair. 

"  Well,  in  the  first  place,  it  would  be  just  like 
a  crazy  man  to  do  such  a  thing,  wouldn't  it?  " 

"  Perhaps." 

"  In  the  second  place,  I  have  heard  that  the 
wild  man  was  seen  around  when  the  bridge  was 
blown  up." 

"  Is  that  so?  Who  saw  him?  " 
192 


THE  WILD  MAN  AGAIN  193 

"  Mr.  Tyson,  the  farmer  who  lives  near  the 
bridge." 

"Why  didn't  he  try  to  capture  the  fellow?" 

"  He  did,  but  in  the  excitement  of  the  blowing 
up  the  wild  man  slipped  him.  And  that  isn't  all. 
Mr.  Tyson  saw  him  coming  from  the  vicinity  of 
that  shanty  where  the  dynamite  was  kept." 

"  Say,  that  is  certainly  interesting!  "  cried  the 
senator's  son.     "When  did  you  learn  all  this?  " 

"  Less  than  an  hour  ago.  Mr.  Tyson  brought 
some  vegetables  to  the  school  and  I  had  a  talk 
with  him." 

"  Did  he  think  the  wild  man  blew  up  the 
hotel?" 

"  No,  he  didn't  connect  the  two." 

"  Hum !  What  do  you  think  of  doing  about 
it?" 

"  I  hardly  know.  I  wish  we  could  round  up  the 
wild  man." 

"  Plenty  of  folks  wish  that." 

"  I  think  he  hangs  out  somewhere  along  the 
river,  or  on  one  of  the  islands." 

"  Maybe  Nat  Poole  knows." 

"  I  hardly  think  so — although  I  am  sure  Nat 
wants  to  find  the  fellow — why,  I  can't  imagine." 

During  those  trying  days,  Job  Haskers  was  as 
harsh  and  dictatorial  to  Dave  and  Roger  as  ever, 
and  several  times  he  passed  sneering  remarks 
about  those  who  were  missing. 


194      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

"  You  may  think  as  you  please,  Doctor  Clay," 
said  he  to  the  master  of  the  Hall.  "  I  feel  sure 
in  my  mind  that  Lawrence  and  those  other  boys 
are  guilty.  I  do  not  think  Mr.  Sparr  would 
accuse  them  if  he  was  not  pretty  sure  of  his 
ground." 

"  Well,  he  has  not  dared  to  have  those  war- 
rants served,"  replied  the  doctor,  dryly. 

"  Because  he  is  afraid  there  will  be  a  great 
deal  of  money  used  in  the  case  to  fight  him." 

"  Mr.  Haskers,  do  you  stand  up  for  Mr.  Sparr? 
I  thought  you  had  had  some  difficulty  yourself 
with  him  once?  " 

"  That  was  but  a  small  affair.  I  think  he  is  per- 
fectly honest  and  that  he  wants  to  do  what  is 
right." 

"  Possibly.  But  he  did  not  treat  Lawrence 
very  fairly  in  the  matter  of  that  dinner  that  was 
ordered." 

"  That  was  a  mistake,  and  Mr.  Sparr  lost  as 
much  as  he  got.  Yes,  I  think  those  boys  guilty, 
and  in  the  end  you  will  find  out  that  I  am  right," 
added  Job  Haskers  as  he  went  off,  smiling  grimly 
to  himself,  as  if  it  was  a  pleasure  to  him  to  have 
the  boys  thus  accused. 

The  next  morning  came  another  surprise.  On 
getting  up  Dave  noticed  that  something  was  miss- 
ing from  the  dormitory.  Phil's  suit-case  was  gone, 
likewise  a  portion  of  his  clothing,  and  also  the 


THE  WILD  MAN  AGAIN  195 

valises  of  Ben  and  Buster,  and  part  of  their  out- 
fits. 

"Well,  this  beats  the  Dutch!"  exclaimed 
Roger,  on  learning  the  news.  "  Who  took  them, 
do  you  suppose?  " 

"  Don't  ask  me,  Roger." 

"  Maybe  they  came  themselves  and  got  them," 
suggested  Sam. 

"  If  they  did,  wouldn't  we  hear  them?  "  asked 
Gus. 

"  Talk  about  a  mysterious  disappearance," 
cried  Shadow.  "  Say,  this  puts  me  in  mind  of  a 
story.     Once  some  fellows " 

"Oh,  stow  it,  Shadow!"  cried  the  senator's 
son.  "  Let's  get  busy  and  try  to  find  out  what 
this  means.    Maybe  they  are  back  at  the  school." 

All  of  the  boys  dressed  hastily  and  took  a 
look  around.  But  they  could  find  no  trace  of  the 
runaways.  Yet  the  traveling-bags  and  the  cloth- 
ing were  certainly  gone. 

"  If  I  didn't  know  better,  I'd  say  the  place  was 
haunted!  "  cried  Luke. 

"  Oh,  don't  say  that!  "  exclaimed  Polly  Vane, 
looking  scared.    "  I  don't  wish  to  see  any  ghosts." 

Doctor  Clay  was  informed  of  what  had  oc- 
curred, and  he  had  another  search  conducted. 
But  it  was  all  to  no  purpose — the  things  were 
missing,  and  that  was  all  there  was  to  it. 

It  may  well  be  imagined  that  with  so  much 


ig6      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

going  on  it  was  next  to  impossible  for  Dave  and 
Roger  to  study.  Yet  they  did  their  best,  not  wish- 
ing to  drop  behind  again  as  they  had  during  the 
trip  to  Cave  Island.  Job  Haskers  did  not  let  up 
on  them,  and  many  a  time  they  wished  he  would 
leave  Oak  Hall  and  that  they  might  never  see 
him  again. 

One  afternoon  Roger  came  to  Dave  in  great 
haste  and  beckoned  for  him  to  come  outside. 

"  I  think  we  had  better  follow  Nat  Poole,"  said 
the  senator's  son.  "  I  think  there  is  something 
in  the  wind." 

"  What  makes  you  think  that?  " 

"  Nat  has  been  packing  a  valise  and  he  has  put 
in  the  strangest  things — some  clothing,  some  bot- 
tles of  medicine,  some  rope,  and  a  thing  that  looks 
like  a  crown  made  of  brass." 

"  A  crown  made  of  brass?  Oh,  Roger,  maybe 
that  wild  man — who  calls  himself  the  King  of 
Sumatra " 

"  That's  the  idea,  Dave,  I  see  you've  caught 
on.  Come  on,  before  Nat  gets  away  from  us." 
•  Our  hero  needed  no  further  urging,  and  soon 
he  and  Roger  were  on  their  way  to  the  gymna- 
sium, where  the  senator's  son  had,  by  pure  acci- 
dent, seen  Nat  Poole  packing  the  things  mentioned 
in  his  handbag. 

As  they  approached,  they  saw  the  money- 
lender's son  trundle  out  a  bicycle  he  owned  and 


THE  WILD  MAN  AGAIN  197 

mount  it,  swinging  his  valise  over  his  shoulder  by 
a  strap.  He  looked  back  to  see  if  he  was  being 
observed,  but  Dave  and  Roger  were  on  guard 
and  quickly  dove  out  of  sight  behind  some  bushes. 

"  We'll  have  to  follow  on  our  own  wheels," 
said  Dave. 

Their  old  bicycles  were  still  in  the  gymnasium. 
They  were  not  in  very  good  condition,  but  the 
tires  were  air-tight  and  that  was  enough.  With- 
out delay,  they  trundled  the  machines  out,  and 
leaping  into  the  saddles,  pedaled  after  Nat. 

The  course  of  the  money-lender's  son  was 
along  the  river  road,  and  he  followed  this  for 
the  best  part  of  a  mile.  Then  he  branched  off 
on  a  side-road  leading  to  what  were  known  as  the 
Chester  Hills.  It  was  hard  work  pushing  the  ma- 
chine up  the  hills,  but  Nat  kept  at  it  steadily,  and 
Dave  and  Roger  followed.  Strange  to  say,  the 
money-lender's  son  did  not  once  look  back  after 
leaving  the  school.  Evidently  he  was  of  the 
opinion  that  nobody  had  observed  his  departure, 
or,  if  so,  had  taken  no  particular  notice  of  it. 

From  the  top  of  one  of  the  hills,  Nat  struck 
off  on  another  side-road,  leading  to  a  little  val- 
ley. Here  was  a  brook,  and  at  a  point  where 
it  widened  out,  a  small  and  really  beautiful  island. 
In  the  center  of  the  island  a  cabin  had  been  built 
by  some  sportsman,  and  a  rustic  bridge  connected 
the  resort  with  the  shore. 


198      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

Reaching  the  rustic  bridge,  Nat  dismounted, 
and  with  his  valise  still  over  his  shoulder,  walked 
towards  the  cabin.  As  he  did  this  Dave  and 
Roger  came  quite  close  and  they,  too,  dismounted, 
keeping  in  the  shelter  of  some  trees  near  by. 

"  Stop !  I  command  you,  in  the  name  of  the 
King  of  Sumatra,  to  stop !  " 

The  call  came  from  the  cabin,  and  a  second 
later  the  wild  man  appeared.  He  was  clad  in 
a  blue  pair  of  trousers  and  over  his  shoulder  was 
thrown  a  big  red  blanket.  On  his  head  rested 
a  crown  made  of  a  tin  pail  cut  into  sharp 
points. 

"  I  salute  you,  King  of  Sumatra !  "  called  out 
Nat,  making  a  low  bow. 

"  Ha !  it  is  my  servant  that  speaks,"  said  the 
wild  man.  "  Bow  low,  bow,  I  tell  you !  "  and  he 
flourished  a  wooden  sword  that  he  held  in  one 
hand. 

"  It  is  the  wild  man,  sure  enough !  "  whispered 
Roger,  in  great  excitement. 

"  And  evidently  he  has  been  expecting  Nat," 
returned  Dave.  "  Let  us  get  closer  and  see  what 
is  up." 

They  advanced  with  care  until  they  were  be- 
hind a  tree  at  the  very  foot  of  the  rustic  bridge. 
In  the  meantime  Nat  had  gone  forward,  bowing 
low  at  every  step. 

"I  have  brought  you  something,  my  king!" 


THE  WILD  MAN  AGAIN  199 

cried  the  money-lender's  son.  "  Something  of 
great  importance  to  you." 

"What  is  it?"  demanded  the  wild  man,  his 
curiosity  excited. 

"  A  new  crown.  It  is  of  gold,  a  beautiful 
crown." 

"  Ha !  ha  !  that  is  well !  The  King  of  Sumatra 
needs  a  new  crown !  "  cried  the  wild  man,  strut- 
ting up  and  down  in  front  of  the  cabin.  "  Give 
it  to  me,  that  I  may  see  if  it  fits."  And  he  held 
out  his  empty  hand. 

"  Let  us  go  into  the  cabin,  and  you  can  sit  in 
your  chair  of  state  while  I  place  it  on  your  head," 
said  Nat,  in  a  soothing,  persuasive  voice.  "  You 
will  like  it,  I  know." 

"Did  you  bring  your  army  with  you?"  de- 
manded the  wild  man,  suspiciously. 

"  No,  I  am  all  alone — the  army  is  at  Oak- 
dale,"  answered  Nat. 

"  Again  'tis  well.  Come  in,  and  I  will  sit  on 
the  throne,"  and  with  a  sweeping  gesture  of  wel- 
come, the  wild  man  stepped  back  into  the  cabin, 
and  Nat  Poole  followed. 

"Now,  what  do  you  make  of  this?"  whis- 
pered Roger,  looking  at  Dave  in  wonder. 

'  I  have  an  idea,  Roger,"  answered  our  hero. 
"Nat  knows  that  man;  in  fact,  he  is  well  ac- 
quainted with  him.  I  think  he  is  going  to  try  to 
make  him  a  prisoner." 


2oo      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

"A  prisoner?  Oh,  I  see;  for  the  glory  of  it, 
eh?" 

"  No,  to  get  him  back  to  some  sanitarium  as 
quietly  as  possible.  I  think  Nat  would  like  to  do 
it  without  anybody  around  here  being  the  wiser." 

"  Oh!  Then  maybe  the  fellow  is  some  relative 
of  the  Pooles." 

"  Possibly,  or  a  close  friend.  But  come  on, 
let  us  see  what  happens.  We  ought  to  try  to  cap- 
ture the  man  ourselves." 

"  To  be  sure.  But  I  don't  see  how  we  are 
going  to  do  it.  We  are  unarmed,  and  they  say 
crazy  folks  are  fearfully  strong." 

"  We'll  have  to  watch  our  chances." 

The  cabin  had  a  window  as  well  as  a  door, 
and  to  the  former  the  two  boys  crawled.  Peering 
through  a  vine  that  grew  over  the  opening,  they 
saw  that  the  wild  man  had  seated  himself  on  a 
rude  bench  which  he  called  his  throne.  It  was 
covered  with  a  tattered  carpet  and  some  cabalistic 
signs  in  blue  chalk.  Nat  had  placed  his  valise 
on  the  ground  and  was  opening  it.  He  brought 
out  the  crown  and  also  the  rope,  but  took  care  to 
conceal  the  latter  under  his  coat. 

"  Now  you  must  close  your  eyes  and  sit  per- 
fectly still  while  I  place  the  crown  on  your  head," 
said  the  money-lender's  son.  "  I  will  have  to  do 
it  from  behind,  for  that  is  the  way  they  do  it  in 
England  and  Germany." 


THE  WILD  MAN  AGAIN  201 

"  Do  they  do  it  in  Russia  that  way,  too?  "  de- 
manded the  wild  man,  and  his  eyes  took  on  a 
glowing  look  as  he  gazed  at  the  brass  crown. 

"  Of  course." 

"  Then  let  it  be  so."  And  the  wild  man  sat 
back  on  the  bench  and  closed  his  eyes,  and  stroked 
his  straggly  beard. 

Quickly  Nat  stepped  behind  the  man,  and  while 
he  fumbled  with  the  crown  with  one  hand,  he 
brought  out  the  rope  with  the  other.  He  was 
greatly  excited  and  his  hands  trembled. 

"  Now  sit  perfectly  still  while  I  count  fifty," 
said  the  money-lender's  son.  "  Then  when 
I " 

He  did  not  finish,  for  at  that  instant  the  wild 
man  let  out  a  sudden  yell  and"  leaped  to  his  feet. 
He  ran  to  the  doorway;  and  the  next  moment 
came  face  to  face  with  Dave  and  Roger. 


CHAPTER  XXI 

SOMETHING  OF  A   CLEW 

"  Ha  !  ha  !  you  are  the  army  sent  to  capture 
me,  are  you  ?  But  I  am  not  to  be  captured !  Take 
the  cannons  away!  Bring  up  the  artillery !  For- 
ward the  light  brigade !  Victory  for  the  King  of 
Sumatra  !  Oh,  if  only  I  had  a  company  of  trained 
monkeys  I  would  show  you  how  to  fight!  " 

Thus  speaking,  the  wild  man  danced  around 
before  Dave  and  Roger,  swinging  his  wooden 
sword  close  to  their  heads.  Indeed,  our  hero 
had  to  dodge  back,  to  keep  from  being  hit. 

"Hello,  you  here?"  cried  Nat,  coming  from 
the  cabin.  "You  followed  me,  did  you?"  He 
scowled  deeply.  "  It's  just  like  you,  Dave 
Porter!" 

"  Nobody  shall  follow  the  King  of  Sumatra !  " 
went  on  the  wild  man,  with  a  cunning  look  at  the 
three  students.  "  Away!  Out  of  my  sight!  "  he 
yelled. 

He  dashed  past  Dave  and  Roger,  moving  to- 
wards the  rustic  bridge.  Our  hero  caught  him  by 
the  arm,  but  received  a  blow  in  the  face  that  stag- 


SOMETHING  OF  A  CLEW  203 

gered  him.  Roger  also  tried  to  catch  the  man, 
but  he  was  too  quick,  and  a  second  later  was  on 
the  bridge. 

"Come  back!"  bawled  Nat.  "Come  back, 
Uncle  Wilbur!  Don't  you  know  me?  Come 
back,  please!  We  won't  hurt  you!  "  And  then 
he  set  off  after  the  wild  man,  who  was  running 
along  the  road  beyond  the  bridge. 

"  Dave,  did  you  hear  that?  "  gasped  the  sena- 
tor's son.  "  He  called  the  wild  man  Uncle  Wil- 
bur!" 

"  Yes,  I  heard  him,"  returned  our  hero.  "  No 
wonder  he  has  been  after  him,  Roger.  Come  on, 
let  us  see  if  we  can't  catch  him." 

The  chums  started  after  the  wild  man  and  the 
money-lender's  son.  The  way  was  along  the  road, 
.  but  presently  the  wild  man  turned  into  a  stretch 
of  woods.  He  could  run  like  a  trained  athlete, 
and  easily  outdistanced  Nat,  who  kept  calling 
after  him. 

When  Dave  and  Roger  came  up  they  found 
the  money-lender's  son  leaning  against  a  tree, 
out  of  breath  and  much  disgusted. 

"Couldn't   get  him,    eh?"   queried   Roger. 

"  No,  you  fellows  scared  him  off,"  growled  the 
money-lender's  son. 

"  I  am  sorry  if  we  did  that,"  said  Dave. 

"  You  had  no  right  to  butt  in,"  grumbled  Nat. 
"What  did  you  follow  me  for,  anyway?  " 


204      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

"  Because  we  thought  you  were  after  the  wild 
man,  that's  why,"  answered  Roger. 

"Humph!" 

"  So  he  is  your  Uncle  Wilbur,"  went  on  our 
hero,  after  a  pause,  and  he  turned  a  look  of 
sympathy  at  Nat  as  he  spoke. 

"Who  told  you  that?" 

"  You  called  him  Uncle  Wilbur." 

"  I — I  guess  you  are  mistaken,"  stammered 
Nat,  growing  red  in  the  face. 

"  No,  we  heard  you  as  plain  as  day,"  put  in 
the  senator's  son. 

"  You  haven't  any  right  to  pry  into  my  affairs, 
Roger  Morr!     You  nor  Dave  Porter  either!" 

"  Perhaps  not,"  answered  Roger. 

"  Look  here,  Nat,  if  we  can  help  you  we'll  do 
it,"  came  from  Dave.  "  I  suppose,  if  that  man  is 
your  uncle,  you  wish  to  get  him  back  to  the — er — 
the  sanitarium  as  quickly  and  as  quietly  as  pos- 
sible; is  that  so?  " 

"  Wouldn't  you  want  to  do  that,  if  he  was 
your  uncle?  "  asked  the  money-lender's  son,  flush- 
ing' deeply. 

"  Certainly.  But  it  looks,  now,  as  if  you  could- 
n't do  it  alone." 

"  I  might  have  done  it,  if  you  hadn't  come  up 
and  queered  my  game." 

"  He  didn't  see  us  until  he  ran  out  of  the 
cabin,"  said  Roger.     "  He  just  got  a  wild  streak 


SOMETHING  OF  A  CLEW  205 

on,  that's  all.  I  don't  think  you  could  have  man- 
aged him  alone.  He  wouldn't  let  you  tie  him  up 
with  that  rope." 

"  Well,  he's  gone,  that's  sure,"  grumbled  Nat. 
"  I'm  going  back  to  the  cabin  for  my  valise." 

"  He  may  come  back,"  suggested  Dave. 

"  I  don't  think  so.  But  I'll  wait  and  see.  I 
hung  around  once  for  him — on  that  island — 
but  he  never  came  back.  It  isn't  often  he  visits 
the  same  spot  twice.  That's  the  reason  the  au- 
thorities around  here  haven't  caught  him." 

"  What  is  his  name,  Nat?  " 

"  Wilbur  Poole,  if  you  must  know.  He  is  my 
father's  half-brother." 

"  Where  did  he  come  from?  " 

"  From  the  Blossmore  Sanitarium,  in  New 
York  state.  It's  a  private  place,  near  Lake  Erie. 
He  lost  a  lot  of  money  several  years  ago  in  a 
speculation  in  Sumatra  tobacco  and  that  made 
him  crazy,  and  that  is  why,  I  suppose,  he  calls 
himself  the  King  of  Sumatra." 

"  Did  you  know  he  was  missing  when  you  heard 
of  the  wild  man?  "  questioned  Dave,  with  in- 
terest. 

"  No,  I  did  not,  for  the  sanitarium  people  did 
not  notify  us  that  he  had  gotten  away.  I  suppose 
they  thought  he  would  stay  near  the  institution 
and  that  they  would  be  able  to  get  him  again.  I 
can't  imagine  what  brought  him  away  out  here, 


206      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

excepting  that  I  went  to  see  him  once,  when  he 
was  somewhat  better,  and  I  told  him  about  Oak- 
dale  and  our  school.  I  knew  he  called  himself 
the  King  of  Sumatra,  and  that  is  why  I  got  in- 
terested in  the  wild  man  as  soon  as  I  heard  you 
mention  that  name.  Then,  when  the  handker- 
chief was  found,  I  was  sure  the  man  was  my 
uncle." 

"  And  you  put  the  hole  in  the  handkerchief," 
said  our  hero. 

"  Yes,  because — well,  I  didn't  want  folks  to 
find  out  from  the  Blossmore  authorities  that  the 
man  was  my  uncle,"  answered  Nat,  casting  down 
his  eyes.  "  I  thought  I  might  be  able  to  catch 
him  and  send  him  back  on  the  quiet.  I  didn't 
want  the  whole  school  talking  about  it." 

"  I  can  understand  your  feelings,  Nat,"  said 
our  hero,  kindly.  "  And  if  I  can  help  you  in  the 
matter,  I'll  do  it." 

"  I  suppose  you'll  tell  everybody  he's  my  uncle," 
came  bitterly  from  the  money-lender's  son. 

"  No,  I  won't.  But  I  think  Doctor  Clay  ought 
to  know  it." 

"And  what  of  your  folks?"  asked  Roger. 
"Do  they  know?" 

"  I  sent  my  dad  a  letter  about  it  last  week. 
But  he  is  away  on  business,  so  I  don't  know 
when  he'll  get  it  or  what  he'll  do.  I  didn't  let  the 
Blossmore  folks  know  because  I  don't  think  my 


SOMETHING  OF  A  CLEW  207 

uncle  ought  to  go  back  to  that  place.  He  ought  to 
be  put  in  an  institution  where  they  are  more  strict, 
so  he  can't  get  away  again." 

"  You  are  right  there,"  said  Dave. 

"  Nat,  don't  you  know  it  is  highly  dangerous  to 
allow  that  man  at  large?"  asked  the  senator's 
son,  after  a  pause,  during  which  the  three  boys 
turned  their  footsteps  towards  the  island  cabin. 

"  Oh,  I  don't  think  he  is  as  dangerous  as  some 
folks  imagine,"  was  the  reply.  "  He  has  never 
actually  harmed  anybody  yet.    But  he  scares  'em." 

"  He  may  have  committed  some  deeds  of  which 
you  know  nothing." 

At  these  suggestive  words  from  the  senator's 
son  Nat  turned  pale. 

"What  do  you  mean?  Have  you  heard  any- 
thing, Roger?  " 

"  I  hate  to  hurt  your  feelings  any  further,  Nat, 
but  I  must  be  honest  with  you.  Dave  and  I  have 
an  idea  that  he  was  the  one  who  blew  up  the 
dining-room  of  Sparr's  hotel." 

"Oh,  impossible!" 

"  What  Roger  says  is  true,"  said  Dave,  gravely. 
"  I  am  sorry  for  you,  Nat,  but  that  is  the  way  it 
looks  to  us.  He  was  seen  around  the  old  stone 
bridge  when  it  was  blown  up,  and  around  the 
shanty  where  the  dynamite  was  kept,  and  he  has 
been  in  Oakdale  several  times,  so  we  have  heard." 

"  Oh,    he    wouldn't   do    such    a    thing !       He 


208      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

couldn't !  "  cried  the  money-lender's  son,  in  gen- 
uine distress. 

"  An  insane  man  is  liable  to  do  anything,  Nat," 
said  Roger.  "  Why,  he  might  have  set  off  that 
dynamite  without  realizing  the  consequences.  The 
best  thing  we  can  do  is  to  organize  a  regular 
search  for  him,  and  round  him  up  as  quickly  as 
possible." 

"  I  suppose  that  is  so,"  groaned  Nat.  "  But, 
oh,  how  I  do  hate  the  exposure!  " 

"  You  mustn't  take  it  too  hard,  Nat,"  said 
Dave.  "  Remember,  neither  you  nor  your  family 
are  responsible  for  his  condition  of  mind." 

It  did  not  take  the  three  students  long  to  reach 
the  little  cabin.  While  Nat  was  packing  up  the 
things  he  had  brought  along,  Dave  and  Roger 
looked  over  the  place.  The  wild  man  had  had 
but  few  things,  none  of  them  worth  mentioning. 
There  was  a  newspaper  and  an  old  magazine, 
showing  that  Wilbur  Poole  occasionally  indulged 
in  reading. 

"  Hello,  look  here!  "  cried  Roger,  as  he  turned 
the  magazine  over.     ''Well,  I  declare!" 

"What  is  it?"  asked  Dave  and  Nat,  in  a 
breath. 

"  Here's  a  picture,  drawn  in  blue  pencil.  It  is 
marked  Fort,  but  it  looks  like  Sparr's  hotel." 

"  And  look  what  it  says !  "  cried  Dave,  eyeing 
the    crude    drawing.     " '  Powder   House    to    be 


SOMETHING  OF  A  CLEW  209 

blown  up  ' !  That's  the  dining-room,  as  plain  as 
day!" 

"  And  down  here  it  says,  '  Dynamite  will  do 
it  easily,'  and  signed,  '  King  of  Sumatra.'  Dave, 
he  did  it,  and  this  proves  it." 

"  It  certainly  looks  that  way,  Roger." 

"Let  me  see  that  drawing!  "  burst  out  Nat, 
and  would  have  snatched  it  from  Roger's  hand 
had  not  Dave  stopped  him. 

"  You  can  look  at  it,  Nat,  but  you  must  give  it 
back,"  said  our  hero. 

"  What  for?  My  uncle  drew  that  and  I  have 
a  right  to  it." 

"  No,  I  am  going  to  hand  this  over  to  Doctor 
Clay  and  then  to  the  Oakdale  authorities.  It  may 
be  needed  to  clear  Phil,  Ben,  and  Buster." 

"  Hurrah,  Dave,  that's  the  talk!  "  cried  Roger, 
with  sudden  enthusiasm.  "  I  didn't  think  of  it, 
but  that  is  just  what  is  needed  to  clear  'em! 
We'll  knock  Jason  Sparr's  accusations  into  a 
cocked  hat! " 

"  You  let  me  see  that  drawing!  "  shouted  Nat, 
making  another  grab  for  it.  "  I've  got  a  right 
to  it — if  my  uncle  made  it." 

"  You  can  look  at  it,  but  you  can't  handle  it," 
said  Dave,  and  he  gave  Roger  a  look  that  the 
senator's  son  well  understood.  Both  knew  that 
the  money-lender's  son  could  not  be  trusted  with 
such  an  important  bit  of  evidence. 


210      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

The  drawing  was  held  up,  but  Nat  was  not 
permitted  to  get  too  close  to  it.  He  looked  it 
over  carelessly  and  then  his  lip  curled. 

"  Huh !  I  don't  think  my  uncle  drew  it,"  he 
said. 

"  And  we  think  he  did,"  returned  Dave. 

There  was  a  sudden  silence  after  this.  Each 
boy  was  busy  with  his  thoughts.  Dave  felt  par- 
ticularly light-hearted. 

"  This  ought  to  clear  Phil  and  the  others," 
he  reasoned.  "  And  they  can  come  back  to  school 
without  delay  and  finish  the  term  and  graduate." 

Having  packed  up  his  things,  Nat  got  out  his 
bicycle  and  prepared  to  ride  back  to  Oak  Hall, 
and  the  others  did  the  same. 

"  Going  to  give  me  that  drawing?  "  asked  the 
money-lender's  son,  just  as  he  was  ready  to  start 
off. 

"  No,  we  are  going  to  turn  it  over  to  Doctor 
Clay,"  said  Roger. 

"  All  right,  have  your  own  way,"  growled 
Nat. 

As  in  coming  to  the  cabin,  the  money-lender's 
son  took  the  lead  in  the  return  to  Oak  Hall. 
Dave  and  Roger  kept  close  behind  and  occasion- 
ally spoke  of  the  happenings  in  guarded  tones. 
When  the  school  was  reached  all  left  their  bi- 
cycles in  the  gymnasium. 

"  Going  to  Doctor  Clay  now?  "  demanded  Nat. 


SOMETHING  OF  A  CLEW  211 

"  We  might  as  well,"  said  Dave.  "  The  sooner 
he  knows  of  this,  the  better  for  everybody." 

11  All  right." 

Doctor  Clay  was  somewhat  surprised  to  see 
the  three  boys,  dusty  and  tired-looking,  enter  his 
private  office.  He  listened  with  close  attention  to 
their  tale  of  visiting  the  cabin  and  encountering 
the  wild  man,  and  looked  completely  astonished 
on  learning  that  the  man  was  Nat's  uncle. 

"  I  am  sorry  for  you,  Poole,"  said  he,  kindly. 
"  But  such  things  will  happen  and  you  must  make 
the  best  of  it.     It  is  not  your  fault." 

Then  Dave  and  Roger  told  of  the  finding  of 
the  old  magazine  with  the  drawing  and  writing, 
and  Doctor  Clay  shook  his  head  sorrowfully. 

"Too  bad!     Too  bad!  "  he  murmured. 

"  But  this  clears  Lawrence,  Basswood,  and 
Beggs,"  cried  Dave.  "  And  it  clears  Roger  and 
myself." 

"Yes!  yes!  so  it  does,  Porter!  " 

"Don't  you  believe  it,  Doctor  Clay!"  cried 
Nat,  leaping  to  his  feet.  "  It  does  nothing  of 
the  sort!  That  paper  is  no  kind  of  evidence  at 
all!  "  And  thus  speaking,  the  money-lender's  son 
glared  defiantly  at  Dave  and  Roger. 


CHAPTER  XXII 

AFTER  THE  RUNAWAYS 

"Why,  Nat,  what  do  you  mean?  "  demanded 
Dave. 

"  I  mean  just  what  I  say!  "  declared  the  money- 
lender's son.  "  This  is  a  frame-up,  nothing  more ! 
I  understand  it  all  now,  although  I  didn't  at 
first." 

"  What  do  you  mean  hy  '  a  frame-up,'  Poole?  " 
demanded  Doctor  Clay. 

"  I  mean  that  they  took  this  magazine  and  the 
drawing  to  the  cabin,  that  is  what  I  mean,  Doctor 
Clay.  They  found  out  somehow  that  my — er — 
that  the  wild  man  was  there,  and  they  got  up  this 
scheme  to  make  it  look  as  if  he  had  blown  up  the 
hotel, — and  they  did  it  just  to  clear  their  cronies 
and  themselves." 

"  Nat,  you  know  that  is  not  true !  "  exclaimed 
Roger.  "  I  found  the  magazine  with  the  draw- 
ing on  a  shelf  in  the  cabin." 

"  Yes,  that  is  what  you  said,  but  I  don't  believe 
it,  Roger  Morr.  I  think  you  put  the  magazine 
there  yourself — you  or  Dave  Porter." 


AFTER  THE  RUNAWAYS  213 

"  We  did  nothing  of  the  kind,"  cried  our  hero. 

"  I  think  you  did — and  I  think  Jason  Sparr 
will  think  so,  too,  when  he  hears  the  story.  It's 
a  frame-up,  just  to  clear  yourselves  and  your 
cronies,"  added  Nat,  with  a  sneer. 

"  Nat,  you  ought  to  be "  began  Roger,  in 

high  anger,  when  Dave  stopped  him.  Our  hero 
looked  at  Doctor  Clay. 

"  What  Roger  says  is  the  absolute  truth,  Doc- 
tor Clay,"  said  our  hero.  "  He  found  that  maga- 
zine on  a  shelf  in  the  cabin  where  the  wild  man 
was  staying,  and  that  drawing  and  the  wording 
were  on  it,  just  as  you  see.  More  than  that,  we 
can  prove  that  the  wild  man  was  around  the  old 
shanty  where  the  dynamite  was  kept,  and  that  he 
was  seen  in  Oakdale  several  times." 

Dave  was  interrupted  here  by  Nat,  and  a  wordy 
war  lasting  several  minutes  followed.  Finally 
Doctor  Clay  said  he  would  take  the  magazine  and 
keep  it,  and  that  he  would  notify  the  authorities 
in  what  locality  the  wild  man  might  be  found,  pro- 
vided he  had  not  gone  away  further  than  ex- 
pected. 

"  I  am  inclined  to  believe  the  story  told  by  Morr 
and  Porter,"  said  he  somewhat  sternly  to  Nat 
Poole.  "  But  this  matter  cannot  be  cleared  up 
until  we  find  your  uncle.  When  captured,  the  un- 
fortunate man  will  most  likely  speak  of  the  blow- 
ing-up in  some  way  or  another,  if  he  is  guilty." 


214      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

"  I  don't  think  so,"  answered  Nat;  but  his  man- 
ner showed  that  he  was  much  disturbed.  Then 
Dave  and  Roger  were  dismissed,  and  the  master 
of  the  school  took  Nat  with  him  to  Oakdale,  to  see 
what  could  be  done  towards  rounding  up  Wilbur 
Poole  in  the  near  future. 

"  Well,  Dave,  what  is  the  next  move?  "  asked 
the  senator's  son,  as  the  two  were  alone  in  the 
lavatory,  washing  up  after  the  long  bicycle  ride. 

"  I  wish  I  could  find  Phil  and  the  others  and 
get  them  to  come  back  here,"  responded  our 
hero.  "  It  is  a  great  mistake  for  them  to  stay 
away." 

"  I  believe  you — it  looks  just  as  if  they  were 
guilty.  I  wonder  that  they  don't  come  back  on 
their  own  account,  now  they  have  had  a  chance 
to  think  it  over." 

"  I  think  they  saw  that  article  in  the  newspaper, 
Roger,  and  it  scared  them  worse  than  ever. 
Maybe  they  imagine  the  officers  of  the  law  are 
waiting  to  gobble  them  up." 

"  If  we  only  had  some  trace  of  them!  " 

"  I've  got  an  idea  I  am  going  to  follow  up." 

"What  sort  of  an  idea?  " 

"  I  was  thinking  of  that  baggage  that  left  here. 
Maybe  it  was  shipped  to  some  point." 

"  You'll  have  a  job  tracing  it  up." 

"  I  can  try  it,  anyway,"  answered  our  hero. 

A  day  slipped  by  and  nothing  more  was  said 


AFTER  THE  RUNAWAYS  215 

about  the  affair  by  Doctor  Clay  or  Nat  Poole. 
Then  Nat  left  the  school,  telling  some  friends  he 
was  going  home  for  a  week's  rest. 

"  Most  likely  he  is  after  his  uncle,"  was  Roger's 
comment,  and  Dave  agreed  with  him. 

As  soon  as  he  could  get  the  time  Dave  went 
to  Oakdale  to  see  if  he  could  find  any  trace  of  the 
baggage  belonging  to  Phil  and  the  others  who  had 
run  away.  He  made  many  inquiries  but  without 
success,  and  was  on  the  point  of  returning  to  the 
school  when  he  happened  to  think  of  an  old  man 
named  Dowling,  who  did  some  trucking  and  who 
knew  Buster  Beggs  very  well. 

"  We'll  go  around  to  Dowling's  place,"  said  he 
to  his  chum. 

They  found  the  old  man  in  a  little  shanty  be- 
hind his  house  which  he  called  his  office.  It  had 
an  old  easy-chair  and  a  desk,  and  on  the  wall  was  a 
telephone. 

"  How  do  you  do,  boys,"  he  said,  politely. 
"  What  can  I  do  for  you?  Want  some  baggage 
shipped?  " 

"  No,  I  came  for  some  information,  Mr.  Dow- 
ling," said  Dave.  "  Have  you  shipped  any  bag- 
gage for  Buster  Beggs  lately?  " 

At  the  mention  of  the  fat  student's  name  the 
old  expressman  started. 

"What  do  you  want  to  know  that  for?"  he 
demanded. 


216      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

"  I've  a  very  good  reason,  Mr.  Dowling.  I 
want  to  do  Beggs  a  favor." 

"  Reckon  you  want  to  find  him,  eh?  " 

"Yes." 

11  So  do  some  other  folks;  "  and  the  old  man 
chuckled. 

"  Well,  we  are  his  friends,  and  we  want  to  find 
him  for  his  own  good." 

"  Who  be  you,  if  I  may  ask?  " 

"  I  am  Dave  Porter,  and  this  is  Roger  Morr. 
Buster  Beggs  is  our  friend,  and  so  are  Phil  Law- 
rence and  Ben  Basswood.  They  ran  away  and 
it  was  foolish  for  them  to  do  it.  Now  we 
want  to  find  them  and  get  them  to  come  back 
here." 

"  It  was  foolish  for  'em  to  run  away— I  said 
thet  all  along,"  murmured  the  old  expressman. 

"Then  you  know  where  they  are?"  put  in 
Roger  quickly. 

"  No,  I  don't." 

"  But  you  took  their  baggage  away,  didn't 
you?  "  questioned  Dave,  for  he  could  see  that  the 
old  man  was  holding  something  back. 

"  I  allow  as  how  I  moved  some  things  for  'em, 
yes,"  was  the  cautious  reply. 

"  When  they  ran  away?  "  pursued  Dave. 

The  old  expressman  nodded. 

"  Who  got  those  bags  from  Oak  Hall?  "  asked 
Roger. 


AFTER  THE  RUNAWAYS  217 

"  Thet's  a  secret,"  and  now  the  old  man  really 
chuckled,  as  if  he  thought  it  was  a  good  joke. 

"You  did!  "  declared  Dave,  bound  to  get  at 
the  truth. 

"  No,  I  didn't.  Buster  did — carried  'em  down 
on  his  back,  one  at  a  time,  in  the  middle  o'  the 
night,  an'  nobuddy  knew  it !  Say,  they  could  walk 
off  with  yer  hull  school  if  they  wanted  to !  "  And 
the  old  expressman  chuckled  again. 

"  You  were  waiting  for  him?  "  continued  Dave. 

"Might  be  as  I  was." 

"  And  you  took  the  baggage  to  the  depot?  " 

"  Maybe  I  did." 

"  And  had  them  checked  on  railroad  tickets?  " 

"  No,  Buster  went  one  way,  and  the  bags  went 
tudder — leas'wise  so  I  was  given  to  understand. 
Maybe  he  done  it  to  put  me  off  the  track,"  con- 
tinued Isaac  Dowling. 

"  But  where  did  the  bags  go  to?  "  demanded 
Dave.  "  Come,  out  with  it,  Mr.  Dowling.  I  give 
you  my  word  that  I  am  acting  for  Buster's  good. 
I  wouldn't  get  him  into  trouble  for  the  world.  He 
is  my  chum,  and  so  are  those  other  boys  my 
friends." 

"  Well,  you  look  honest,  boy,  so  I'll  tell  ye. 
The  baggage  was  sent  by  express  to  a  place  called 
Camptown  Falls,  in  Maine." 

"  Camptown  Falls  1  "  cried  Roger.     Then  he 


218      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

looked  at  Dave,  who  nodded,  to  show  that  he 
understood. 

"Did  Buster  say  he  was  going  elsewhere?" 
queried  Dave. 

"  He  didn't  say  so,  exactly.  But  he  mentioned 
Boston,  an'  I  thought  he  was  goin'  there." 

"  He  left  on  the  train?  " 

"  No,  he  didn't !  He  went  off  in  the  darkness, 
an'  that's  the  last  I  see  o'  him,"  concluded  Isaac 
Dowling,  as  a  hail  came  for  him  to  come  into  the 
house. 

"  Camptown  Falls,"  said  Dave,  when  he  and 
Roger  were  alone.  "  Can  they  have  gone  to  that 
out-of-the-way  spot?  " 

"  It  would  be  the  place  Buster  would  pick  out, 
Dave.  He  has  often  spoken  of  going  camping  up 
there." 

"  He  must  have  mentioned  Boston  just  to  throw 
old  Dowling  off  the  track." 

"  More  than  likely.  And  to  think  he  took  those 
bags  away  while  we  slept!  " 

"  I  wonder  where  Phil  and  Ben  were  at  the 
time?" 

"  I  don't  know.  Maybe  they  were  at  that 
camp." 

Much  excited  over  what  they  had  learned,  Dave 
and  the  senator's  son  returned  to  Oak  Hall.  They 
had  expected  to  interview  Doctor  Clay  and  were 
chagrined  to  learn  that  he  had  gone  to  New  York 


AFTER  THE  RUNAWAYS  219 

on  important  business  and  would  not  return  for 
two  days.  Mr.  Dale  had  been  left  in  charge  of 
the  school. 

"  Roger,  do  you  know  what  I  think  of  doing?  " 
said  our  hero.  "  I've  a  good  notion  to  get  per- 
mission to  leave  the  Hall  and  go  after  Phil  and 
the  others.  I  think  I  can  get  them  to  come 
back." 

"  Want  me  to  go  along?  " 

"  That  will  hardly  be  necessary.  Besides,  I'd 
like  somebody  to  stay  here  and  watch  Nat  Poole, 
if  he  comes  back.  Do  you  know,  I've  a  notion  that 
Nat  knows  more  about  this  affair  than  he  would 
like  to  tell." 

"  He  certainly  acts  that  way." 

"  I  am  going  to  see  Mr.  Dale." 

Our  hero  had  a  long  talk  with  the  head  assist- 
ant, and  the  upshot  of  this  was  that  he  got  per- 
mission to  go  to  Maine,  to  look  for  the  runaways. 
He  was  to  be  gone  no  longer  than  was  absolutely 
necessary. 

It  did  not  take  our  hero  long  to  prepare  for 
the  trip.  He  packed  a  few  things  in  a  suit-case 
and  then  he  was  ready.  He  consulted  a  map  and 
some  timetables,  and  found  he  could  leave  Oak- 
dale  on  the  first  train  in  the  morning,  and,  by  mak- 
ing two  changes,  reach  Camptown  Falls  about  two 
o'clock  in  the  afternoon.  Nobody  but  Roger  and 
Mr.  Dale  knew  that  he  was  going  away. 


220      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

"  Got  money  enough,  have  you,  Dave?  "  ques- 
tioned the  senator's  son. 

"  Yes,  Roger." 

"  It's  a  wild  kind  of  a  spot,  so  Buster  told 
me." 

"  I  am  not  afraid  of  that — if  only  I  can  locate 
the  boys,"  answered  our  hero. 

"  How  are  you  going  to  look  for  them?  " 

"  I  don't  know  yet — I'll  find  out  after  I  get 
there." 

It  must  be  confessed  that  Dave  slept  but  little 
that  night.  His  mind  was  filled  with  what  was 
before  him.  He  felt  that  he  had  quite  a  mission 
to  perform,  first  in  locating  the  runaways  and 
then  in  persuading  them  to  return  to  Oak  Hall 
to  face  the  music. 

He  had  an  early  breakfast,  Roger  eating  with 
him,  and  then  the  buggy,  driven  by  Horsehair,  was 
brought  around  and  he  got  in,  and  a  minute  later 
he  was  off,  the  senator's  son  waving  him  an  adieu 
from  the  porch  of  the  school. 

Dave  found  the  first  train  he  rode  on  but  half 
filled  with  passengers,  and  he  had  a  double  seat 
to  himself.  He  changed  at  the  Junction,  and 
about  noon  reached  Lumberport,  where  he  was  to 
take  the  train  on  the  little  side-line  for  Camptown 
Falls.  At  Lumberport  he  got  dinner,  at  a  hotel 
frequented  by  lumbermen.  He  sat  at  a  long  table 
with  half  a  dozen  men  and  listened  to  their  talk 


AFTER  THE  RUNAWAYS  221 

with  interest  when  he  heard  Camptown  Falls  men- 
tioned. 

"  Yes,  they  tell  me  there  is  great  danger  of  the 
dam  giving  way  just  above  Camptown  Falls,"  one 
of  the  men  said.  "  Doxey  reported  it  hasn't  been 
safe  for  a  week." 

"  Say,  if  that  dam  gave  way  it  would  do  a  lot 
of  damage  below  the  Falls,"  said  another. 

"  It  certainly  would,"  replied  a  tall  lumberman. 
"  It  would  wipe  out  some  of  those  camps  on 
Moosetail  Island.  I  rather  guess  the  water  would 
cover  the  whole  island." 

"  Somebody  ought  to  warn  the  campers,"  said 
another. 

"  Oh,  I  guess  they  know  it  already,"  was  the 
answer. 

Dave  arose  from  the  table  feeling  very  uneasy. 
He  remembered  the  name,  Moosetail  Island,  now. 
Buster  had  once  mentioned  it,  stating  he  had 
camped  there  and  would  like  to  go  again.  Were 
the  runaways  there  now,  and  in  danger  of  the  dam, 
should  it  break? 


CHAPTER  XXIII 

AT  THE  CAMP 

At  last  the  train  came  that  was  to  take  our 
hero  to  the  railroad  station  of  Camptown  Falls. 
It  was  merely  a  flag  station,  but  the  conductor 
said  he  would  stop  there  for  any  passenger  who 
might  wish  to  get  off.  The  railroad  was  a  single- 
track  affair,  running  through  the  woods  and  across 
the  country  stretches,  and  the  train  consisted  of 
one  passenger  car  and  several  freights. 

Dave  looked  at  the  passengers  and  counted 
them.  There  were  just  an  even  dozen,  and  of 
these,  ten  were  men,  farmers  and  those  in  the 
lumber  business.  One,  a  bright  young  fellow,  sat 
near  our  hero,  and  Dave  resolved  to  ask  him  if 
he  knew  anything  about  Camptown  Falls  and  the 
summer  camps  in  that  vicinity. 

"  Yes,  I  know  all  about  the  Falls,"  said  the 
young  lumberman.  "  I  work  not  over  three  miles 
from  there — at  Cropley's — the  station  this  side 
of  Camptown.  There  ain't  any  town,  not  since 
the  Jewell  Lumber  Company  busted  up.  Some 
folks  camp  out  there,  down  along  the  river  and 


AT  THE  CAMP  223 

on  Moosetail  Island,  but  there  aren't  near  as 
many  as  there  used  to  be." 

"  Somebody  said  the  dam  above  Camptown 
Falls  was  dangerous?"  said  Dave. 

"  I  think  it  is  myself,  and  I  can't  understand 
how  they  allow  folks  to  camp  along  the  river  and 
on  that  island.  If  that  dam  ever  broke  it  would 
be  good-by  to  anybody  on  the  island,  I'm  think- 
ing." 

"  Have  you  been  up  to  the  island  lately?  " 

"  I  was  there  about  a  week  ago." 

"  Who  were  there  then,  do  you  know?  " 

"  A  couple  of  men  from  Portland  and  half  a 
dozen  young  fellers  from  Springfield.  There  was 
another  camp,  with  some  women  in  it,  but  I  didn't 
get  around  to  that,  I  only  heard  of  it.  There  are 
half  a  dozen  camps  along  the  right  bank  of  the 
river,  but  they  are  on  high  ground,  and  if  the  dam 
broke  it  isn't  likely  the  water  would  reach  'em," 
continued  the  young  lumberman. 

The  train  rolled  along  at  a  rate  of  twenty  miles 
an  hour,  making  stops  at  stations  and  crossroads. 
Here  and  there  a  person  got  on  or  off,  and  by  the 
time  Camptown  Falls  was  reached  Dave  had  the 
passenger  car  almost  to  himself. 

The  train  halted  for  but  a  minute  and  our  hero 
alighted,  suit-case  in  hand.  Much  to  his  surprise, 
not  a  soul  was  about  the  little  depot,  which  looked 
old  and   dilapidated.      There   was   a   stretch   of 


224      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

fields  beyond  the  track,  and  farther  on  he  made 
out  the  glistening  waters  of  the  river,  and  in  the 
center  the  woodland  stretch  known  as  Moosetail 
Island. 

"  Well,  this  surely  is  Lonesome  Land!  "  Dave 
murmured  to  himself,  as  the  train  rumbled  out 
of  sight  and  he  was  left  utterly  alone.  "  And 
not  another  train  until  eight  o'clock  to-morrow 
morning!  I'll  have  a  fine  time  of  it  to-night  if  I 
don't  meet  those  fellows,  or  run  across  some  camp 
where  they  will  take  me  in." 

Dave  looked  at  the  sky  and  this  did  not  tend 
to  increase  his  good  spirits.  When  he  had  left 
Oakdale  it  had  been  warm  and  clear;  now  dark 
clouds  were  forming  overhead  and  it  looked  as  if 
it  might  rain  before  long. 

"  Well,  I've  got  my  raincoat  and  a  waterproof 
cap,  and  that  is  one  comfort,"  he  told  himself. 
"  But  I  had  better  hurry  up  and  see  if  I  can't 
find  Phil  and  the  others  before  it  gets  too  dark. 
I  wish  there  was  somebody  here  who  could  tell 
me  where  to  go." 

He  looked  around  for  a  sign  of  some  habita- 
tion. Far  across  the  river  he  saw  a  column  of 
smoke,  coming  up  from  among  the  trees,  but  that 
was  all.  The  only  building  in  sight  was  the 
deserted  depot. 

There  was  something  of  a  path  leading  from 
the  depot  to  the  river,  and  Dave  followed  this. 


AT  THE  CAMP  225 

But  soon  the  path  seemed  to  divide,  and  the  vari- 
ous branches  became  more  indistinct  at  every  step, 
especially  as  it  was  rapidly  growing  darker  and 
darker. 

"  I'll  strike  a  straight  course  for  Moosetail 
Island,"  Dave  said  to  himself.  "  I'll  surely  find 
some  people  camping  out  there,  and  they  may 
be  able  to  tell  me  about  the  boys,  if  they  are 
here." 

As  he  approached  the  river,  going  down  a  small 
hill,  the  way  became  stony,  and  he  had  to  walk 
with  care,  for  fear  of  going  into  some  holer  or 
twisting  an  ankle.  It  was  hard  work,  especially 
with  the  suit-case,  and  he  half  wished  he  had  hid- 
den the  baggage  somewhere  near  the  depot. 

"  I  was  a  big  chump  that  I  didn't  bring  some 
lunch  along,"  he  reasoned.  And  then  he  had  to 
smile  at  himself,  as  he  remembered  how  he  had 
imagined  that  he  might  put  up  at  some  hotel  in 
Camptown  Falls !  He  had  not  dreamed  that  the 
place  would  prove  such  a  lonely  one.  It  was  cer- 
tainly an  ideal  spot  for  runaways  who  wished  to 
remain  undiscovered. 

Presently  Dave  found  himself  at  the  bank  of 
the  river,  a  wide  but  shallow  stream,  filled  with 
sandbars,  rocks,  and  piles  of  driftwood.  Not  a 
great  distance  off  was  the  end  of  Moosetail 
Island. 

It  was  now  so  dark  that  our  hero  could  see  but 


226      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

little.  As  he  stood  at  the  edge  of  the  river,  he 
heard  a  patter  on  the  leaves  of  the  trees  and  knew 
it  had  begun  to  rain. 

"Wonder  how  they  get  to  the  island?"  he 
mused.  "  They  must  either  use  canoes,  or  else 
wade  across,  or  ford  along  the  stones." 

He  moved  along  the  river-bank,  and  soon  came 
to  a  point  where  the  stones  in  the  river  seemed  to 
stretch  in  a  line  from  the  bank  to  the  island. 

"  I  guess  I'll  try  it  here,"  he  told  himself. 
"  But  I  think  I  had  better  leave  the  suit-case 
behind." 

He  placed  the  case  in  a  tree,  sheltering  it  as 
much  as  possible  from  the  rain,  which  was  now 
coming  down  at  a  lively  rate.  Then,  donning  his 
raincoat  and  waterproof  cap,  he  set  out  over  the 
rocks  in  the  river,  leaping  from  one  to  the  next 
and  heading  for  the  island. 

It  was  no  easy  journey,  and  when  but  half-way 
to  Moosetail  Island  Dave  slipped  and  went  into 
the  stream  up  to  his  knees.  He  floundered  around 
for  a  moment,  splashing  the  water  into  his  face 
and  over  his  coat  and  cap. 

"Phew!  this  is  lots  of  fun!"  was  his  grim 
comment,  as  he  at  length  found  himself  on  a  flat 
rock,  catching  his  breath.  "  Well,  I  am  half- 
way over,  anyway." 

The  remainder  of  the  distance  proved  easier 
traveling,  and  ten  minutes  later  our  hero  stood 


AT  THE  CAMP  227 

on  the  island.  It  was  now  raining  steadily,  and 
the  darkness  of  the  storm  had  settled  every- 
where. 

"  I  guess  the  best  thing  I  can  do  is  to  move 
right  around  the  shore  of  this  island,"  he  rea- 
soned. "  By  doing  that  I  am  bound  to  strike  one 
of  the  camps,  sooner  or  later." 

He  moved  along  as  rapidly  as  the  rocky  shore 
of  Moosetail  Island  permitted.  He  had  to  pro- 
ceed with  care,  for  there  were  many  dangerous 
pitfalls. 

At  length  his  heart  was  gladdened  by  the  sight 
of  a  rude  log  cabin,  set  in  the  trees  a  little  back 
from  the  water.  He  hurried  to  it  and  found  the 
door  and  window  closed.  Evidently  the  spot  was 
deserted. 

"  Nobody  here,"  he  murmured,  and  his  heart 
sank  for  the  moment,  for  he  could  see  that  the 
camp  had  not  been  used  for  a  long  time.  Then 
he  went  on,  the  rain  in  the  meanwhile  coming  down 
harder  than  ever.  The  downfall  made  him  think 
of  the  dam  that  was  said  to  be  weak.  What  if  the 
present  storm  should  make  that  structure  give 
way? 

"  I  wish  we  were  all  out  of  this,"  he  murmured. 
"  I  wonder  if  it  would  do  any  good  to  call?  " 

He  set  up  a  yell  and  listened,  and  then  he 
yelled  again.  From  a  long  distance  came  an  an- 
swering cry. 


228      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

"Hurrah,  that's  somebody,  anyway!"  he  ex- 
claimed.    "  I  hope  it  was  one  of  the  boys!  " 

He  stumbled  in  the  direction  of  the  cry.  Then 
he  yelled  once  more,  and  again  came  the  answer- 
ing call.  But  now  Dave  was  sure  it  was  a  man's 
voice,  and  he  was  somewhat  disappointed. 

"Where  are  you?"  he  called  out,  a  moment 
later.     "Where  are  you?" 

"  This  way!  Come  this  way!  "  was  the  reply, 
and  soon  Dave  passed  through  a  patch  of  timber 
and  around  some  rocks  and  reached  a  spot  where 
there  was  a  tiny  cove,  with  a  stretch  of  fine  sand. 
Facing  the  cove  was  a  neat  log  cabin  with  a  small 
lean-to,  the  latter  containing  a  tiny  stove. 

A  tall,  good-natured  man  stood  in  the  lean-to, 
peering  out  into  the  rain.  He  watched  Dave's 
approach  with  interest.  He  looked  to  be  what  he 
was,  a  camp-cook  and  general  worker. 

"  Hello !  "  he  exclaimed,  as  Dave  hurried  in 
out  of  the  rain  and  shook  the  water  from  his  cap. 
"  I  thought  you  were  one  of  our  crowd." 

"What  camp  is  this?"  questioned  our  hero, 
eagerly. 

"  Well,  it  ain't  no  camp  in  particular,"  an- 
swered the  man,  with  a  grin.    "  It's  jest  a  camp." 

"  But  who  is  stopping  here?  " 

"  Three  young  fellers  and  myself." 

"  Are  their  names  Beggs,  Lawrence,  and  Bass- 
wood?  " 


AT  THE  CAMP  229 

"  You've  struck  it.  Maybe  you  are  a  friend 
to  'em?  "  went  on  the  man,  inquiringly. 

"  I  am,  and  I  have  come  a  long  distance  to  find 
them,"  returned  Dave,  and  his  tone  of  voice 
showed  his  relief.     "  Where  are  they?  " 

"  They  left  the  camp  right  after  dinner  an'  they 
ain't  back  yet.  When  you  called  I  thought  it 
was  one  of  'em,  although  they  didn't  expect  to 
be  back  much  before  supper-time.  But  now  it's 
rainin'  I  guess  they'll  come  back  sooner." 

"  How  long  have  they  been  here?  " 

"  Most  a  week  now,  I  guess.  I  didn't  come 
till  day  before  yesterday.  I  didn't  have  nothin' 
to  do  an'  they  give  me  a  job,  cookin'  an'  like  that," 
returned  the  man. 

He  invited  Dave  to  make  himself  at  home,  and 
our  hero  was  glad  enough  to  go  inside  and  take  off 
the  wet  raincoat  and  also  his  shoes  and  socks. 
The  baggage  belonging  to  Phil  and  the  others 
was  in  the  cabin,  and  he  helped  himself  to  dry 
garments  and  a  dry  pair  of  slippers. 

"  We  are  all  school  chums,"  he  told  the  man. 
"  My  name  is  Dave  Porter." 

"Oh,  I  heard  'em  talkin'  about  you!"  cried 
the  camp-worker,  and  then  said  his  own  name  was 
Jerry  Blutt,  and  that  he  was  from  Tegley,  just 
across  the  Canadian  border. 

"  We  are  not  far  from  the  border  here,  are 
we?"  asked  our  hero. 


230      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

"  About  six  miles,  thet's  all,"  answered  Jerry 
Blutt,  and  this  reply  gave  Dave  another  idea. 
More  than  likely  Buster  and  the  others  had  chosen 
this  spot  so  that,  if  pursued  by  the  officers  of  the 
law,  they  could  flee  into  Canada. 

Jerry  Blutt  said  the  three  lads  had  spent  their 
time  in  various  ways,  occasionally  going  fishing 
and  swimming.  They  had  also  written  some  let- 
ters and  gone  to  the  railroad  station  to  mail  them 
in  the  box  placed  there  for  that  purpose. 

"  Have  they  been  having  a  good  time?  "  asked 
Dave,  curiously. 

"  I  can't  say  as  to  that,  Mr.  Porter.  They 
did  seem  mighty  worried  over  something,"  an- 
swered the  camp-worker,  and  from  this  our  hero 
felt  certain  that  the  man  had  not  been  let  into 
the  secret  of  why  the  runaways  were  there  at  all. 

Half  an  hour  went  by  and  it  continued  to  rain 
as  hard  as  ever,  while  the  sky  remained  dark  and 
the  wind  blew  with  more  or  less  violence.  Time 
and  again  Dave  went  to  the  cabin  door,  to  peer 
out  into  the  storm,  but  each  time  he  turned  back 
disappointed.     His  chums  were  not  yet  in  sight. 

"  They'll  be  surprised  to  see  me,"  he  thought. 
"  I  wonder  if  they  will  listen  to  reason  and  go 
back  with  me?  Supposing  they  refuse  to  return? 
I'd  hate  to  go  back  alone." 

Then  he  questioned  Jerry  Blutt  about  the  dam 
above  the  Falls.    The  man  shrugged  his  shoulders. 


AT  THE  CAMP  231 

"  It  ain't  safe,  so  they  tell  me,"  he  said.  "  But 
it's  been  that  way  a  long  time,  so  maybe  it  won't 
break  away  yet  awhile.  But  I'd  hate  to  be  on 
the  river  when  she  does  go." 

"Are  there  any  other  camps  on  this  island?" 
went  on  our  hero. 

"  Not  now.  There  was  some  other  folks,  two 
or  three  parties,  I  was  told,  but  they  all  moved 
out  yesterday  an'  the  day  before.  Maybe  they 
got  afraid  o'  the  dam,"  concluded  the  camp- 
worker. 


CHAPTER  XXIV 

OUT  IN  THE  STORM 

"  This  is  getting  to  be  something  fierce!  " 

It  was  Dave  who  uttered  the  words,  about  five 
o'clock  in  the  afternoon.  He  was  looking  out  of 
the  door  of  the  cabin,  and  beside  him  stood  Jerry 
Blutt. 

The  storm  had  kept  up  without  intermission, 
the  rain  coming  down  in  a  perfect  torrent,  and  the 
wind  blowing  in  fitful  gusts  from  the  east.  It 
was  raw  and  depressing,  and  our  hero  could  not 
help  but  shiver  as  he  looked  out  on  the  turbulent 
waters  of  the  river. 

"  It's  a  pity  them  fellers  ain't  got  back,"  said 
the  camp-worker,  with  a  slow  shake  of  his  head. 
"  It  ain't  nice  to  be  out  in  sech  a  downpour  as 
this,  an'  with  sech  a  wind!  Might  a  tree  blow 
down  on  'em!  "     And  he  shook  his  head  again. 

Dave  was  even  more  distressed  than  the  man. 
He  could  not  get  that  dam  out  of  his  mind.  Such 
a  heavy  fall  of  rain  would  certainly  cause  a  great 
flow  of  water,  and  if  the  structure  was  weak,  most 
anything  bad  was  liable  to  happen. 

232 


OUT  IN  THE  STORM  233 

"  As  soon  as  the  boys  get  back  I'll  urge  them 
to  leave  here,"  he  told  himself.  "  If  that  dam 
breaks  we  want  to  be  on  high  ground,  where  the 
flood  can't  reach  us." 

"  'Pears  to  me  like  the  river  was  gittin'  putty 
high,"  remarked  Jerry  Blutt,  a  little  later,  as  he 
watched  the  water  in  the  cove  closely. 

"  Well,  it  would  rise  some  with  all  this  rain 
coming  down,"  returned  Dave. 

"  So  it  might, — but  I  don't  know.  I  wish  this 
camp  was  on  the  shore,  instid  o'  this  island." 

"  So  do  I,"  answered  Dave,  bluntly. 

A  fire  had  been  started  in  the  stove  and  a  lan- 
tern lit,  and  Jerry  Blutt  rather  reluctantly  began 
preparations  for  the  evening  meal.  But  he  kept 
peering  out  of  the  doorway  of  the  cabin,  and 
from  the  lean-to,  and  his  eyes  always  rested  on 
the  river,  with  its  rain-swept,  swollen  surface. 

"  I  don't  like  it  at  all!  "  he  said,  finally.  "  I 
wish  we  had  moved  over  to  the  shore." 

"  Don't  you  think  it  is  safe  to  stay  here?  " 

"  It  ain't  as  safe  as  it  might  be.  If  I  was 
alone "     The  man  stopped  short. 

"  What  would  you  do?  " 

"  I  hate  to  say  it,  but  I  think  I'd  go  over  to  the 
shore,  till  the  storm  was  over  and  I  knew  jest 
how  thet  dam  was  a-goin'  to  act." 

"  Well,  I  don't  blame  you,"  answered  Dave. 
"  And  if  you  want  to  go,  go  ahead." 


234      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

"  Want  me  to  go  alone?  " 

"  If  you  wish  to  go,  yes." 

"  But  it  ain't  no  safer  fer  you  than  it  is  fer  me." 

"  That's  so,  too.  But  I  want  to  see  those  other 
fellows — in  fact,  I  must  see  them.  If  I  went  to 
the  shore  I  might  miss  them." 

"  You  could  come  back  later  on." 

"  But  I  want  to  warn  them  of  the  danger  from 
the  dam." 

"  You  could  write  a  letter  and  stick  it  up  where 

they  couldn't  help  but  see  it.    Then What's 

that?" 

The  camp-worker  stopped  short,  as  a  distant 
cry  reached  their  ears,  sounding  out  above  the 
wind.     An  instant  later  the  cry  was  repeated. 

"  That  is  Ben  Basswood's  voice!  "  cried  Dave. 
"  They  must  be  coming  back!  " 

Soon  another  voice  sounded  out,  and  our  hero 
recognized  Buster  Beggs's  tones.  He  ran  to  the 
cabin  door.  All  was  dark  outside,  and  the  rain 
was  being  driven  in  sheets  by  the  wind. 

"  Hello !  hello !  "  he  yelled,  and  catching  up 
the  lantern,  he  swung  it  out  in  one  direction  and 
another.  Then  he  saw  two  forms  approaching 
on  the  run,  each  dripping  with  water. 

"Ben!    And  Buster!" 

14  Why,  if  it  isn't  Dave !  " 

"Where  in  the  world  did  you  come  from?" 

"Where  is  Phil?"  demanded  our  hero. 


OUT  IN  THE  STORM  235 

"  He  is  somewhere  behind  us,"  answered  Bus- 
ter. "  Oh,  what  a  time  we've  had!  "  and  enter- 
ing the  cabin,  the  fat  youth  sank  down  on  a  bench 
all  but  exhausted. 

"  We've  had  to  tramp  for  over  two  miles  in 
this  rain,"  explained  Ben.  "  And  of  course  we 
had  to  ford  to  the  island.  Say,  the  current  is 
something  fierce  now!  And  the  water  is  getting 
higher  every  minute !  "  he  added. 

"Did  you  say  Phil  was  behind  you?"  de- 
manded Dave.    He  still  held  the  lantern  on  high. 

"  I  thought  he  was — sure,  he  must  be,"  an- 
swered Ben.  "Give  him  a  hail,  will  you?  I'm 
too  tired,"  and  he  sank  on  the  bench  beside  Buster. 

"  Phil !  Phil !  "  yelled  our  hero,  at  the  top  of  his 
lungs.  "  This  way!  This  way!  "  and  he  swung 
the  lantern  to  the  right  and  left. 

"  Did  you  say  the  river  is  rising?  "  demanded 
Jerry  Blutt.  "  How  high  is  it?  Over  the  White 
Bar  yet?" 

"  Yes,  the  Bar  is  a  foot  under  water,"  an- 
swered Ben.     "Oh,  this  is  a  great  storm!  " 

"A  foot  under  water!  "  murmured  the  camp- 
worker.  "Say,  we  better  git  out!  First  thing 
you  know  this  hull  island  will  be  under!  An'  if 
thet  dam  breaks " 

"Oh,  the  dam!"  gasped  Buster.  "I  forgot 
about  that!  They  say  it  isn't  safe  at  all!  That 
is  why  all  the  other  campers  got  out!     Yes,  we 


236      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

must  leave  the  island  and  go  to  the  shore."  He 
turned  to  Dave.     "  Did  you  come  alone?  " 

"  Yes,  Buster.  I'll  tell  you  all  about  it  later. 
But  now  we  must  find  Phil." 

"  I  thought  he  was  right  behind  me,"  came 
from  Ben.  He  looked  greatly  distressed.  "  I 
wonder  if  anything  happened  to  him?  Maybe  he 
slipped  off  the  rocks  into  the  river!  " 

"We  must  look  for  him!"  cried  Dave,  and 
reached  for  his  coat  and  cap.  "  Show  me  the 
way  you  came,  Ben." 

Ben  was  nothing  loath,  and  side  by  side  the 
two  chums  ran  outside  into  the  storm,  and  in  the 
direction  of  the  upper  end  of  the  island.  They 
had  gone  but  a  short  distance  when  they  reached 
a  low  spot  and  here  suddenly  found  themselves  in 
water  several  inches  deep. 

"Hello,  you  are  taking  me  into  the  river!" 
cried  Dave. 

"  This  isn't  the  river!  "  answered  Ben,  with  a 
gasp.  "  Gosh !  how  the  water  is  rising !  This 
was  dry  when  I  came  over  it  before !  " 

"  Dry!  "  ejaculated  our  hero.  "  Ben,  are  you 
sure?  " 

"  Positive !  Say,  the  water  is  rising  to  beat 
the  band!  I  guess  we  had  better  get  out!  If  we 
don't  we'll  have  to  swim  for  it!  " 

"  Phil !     Phil !     Where  are  you  ?  " 

Standing  in  water  up  to  his  ankles,  our  hero 


OUT  IN  THE  STORM  237 

called  again  and  again,  and  Ben  joined  in  the 
cry.  The  lantern  was  flashed  in  all  directions. 
But  nothing  was  seen  or  heard  of  the  missing 
student. 

"  I  am  sure  he  started  to  follow  us  across  the 
river,"  said  Ben.  "  Buster  was  in  front,  I  came 
next,  and  Phil  was  in  the  rear.  I  asked  him  twice 
if  he  was  all  right  and  he  said  he  was.  Then  it 
blew  so  hard,  and  the  rain  got  so  heavy,  none  of 
us  said  any  more.    Oh,  Dave,  what  shall  we  do?  " 

"  I  don't  know  Ben — wish  I  did." 

"  Do  you  think  he  slipped  off  the  rocks  and 
was — was — drowned?  " 

"  I  hope  not." 

"  If  he  was,  wouldn't  it  be  terrible?  " 

"Yes." 

A  cry  came  from  behind  them,  and  Buster  ap- 
peared, followed  by  Jerry  Blutt. 

"  Where  is  Phil?  "  demanded  the  stout  youth. 

"  We  don't  know." 

"  The  water  is  terribly  high,  and  Jerry  thinks 
we  had  better  move  to  the  shore.  He  says  we 
might  be  drowned  if  that  dam  should  break." 

"  Don't  you  think  we  ought  to  find  Phil  first?  " 

"  Sure — if  we  can.  Maybe  he  went  back,  when 
he  found  out  how  the  water  was  rising,"  went  on 
the  stout  youth,  hopefully. 

"  I  don't  think  he'd  desert  us,"  answered  Ben. 
"  That  isn't  Phil's  style." 


238      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

"  You're  right,  Ben,"  said  Dave. 

All  splashed  around  in  the  water  for  several 
minutes,  but  without  making  any  discovery  of  im- 
portance. The  river  was  now  rising  more 
rapidly  than  ever,  and  the  camp-worker  showed 
increased  nervousness. 

"  Ain't  no  two  ways  about  it — the  dam's  bust!  " 
he  cried,  at  last.  "  I'm  goin'  to  git  out,  an'  I 
advise  all  o'  you  to  do  the  same.  If  you  want 
me  to  carry  anything  to  shore  I'll  do  it." 

"  We  can't  carry  any  trunks  in  such  a  hurry," 
said  Buster. 

"  Let  us  carry  our  suit-cases  and  bundles,"  said 
Ben. 

With  heavy  hearts,  Dave  and  the  others  re- 
turned to  the  cabin.  The  water  in  the  cove  had 
now  risen  so  high  that  it  swept  the  edge  of  the 
lean-to. 

"  Can  we  get  to  shore?  "  asked  Buster.  "  We 
haven't  any  boat,"  he  added,  turning  to  Dave. 

"  We  can  if  you'll  hurry,"  replied  Jerry  Blutt. 
"  Every  minit  lost  makes  it  jest  so  much  more 
dangerous." 

In  great  haste  Ben  and  Buster  and  the  camp- 
worker  gathered  together  such  belongings  as  they 
could  conveniently  carry.  The  other  things  were 
placed  in  a  trunk  and  hoisted  by  ropes  into  a  big 
tree.  Then  a  lantern  was  tied  on  a  post  in  front 
of  the  cabin  and  to  it  was  fastened  a  brief  note, 


OUT  IN  THE  STORM  239 

for  Phil's  benefit,  stating  they  had  gone  to  the 
shore. 

"Oh,  I  hope  he  is  safe!"  murmured  Dave, 
anxiously. 

"  So  do  I,"  added  his  chums. 

Jerry  Blutt  led  the  way  along  the  shore  of  the 
island  and  then  out  into  the  stream.  They  had  the 
second  camp  lantern  with  them,  one  belonging  to 
Jerry.  He  led  the  way  from  rock  to  rock,  and 
they  followed  in  single  file,  Dave  bringing  up  the 
rear.  Ever  and  anon  our  hero  looked  back  for 
some  sign  of  Phil,  but  without  avail. 

Once  out  in  the  river,  all  were  certain  that  the 
dam  above  Camptown  Falls  had  burst.  The  water 
ran  with  great  rapidity  and  was  filled  with  dirt 
and  debris  of  various  kinds.  On  the  rocks  that 
were  low  they  had  all  they  could  do  to  keep  their 
footing. 

The  most  dangerous  part  of  the  river  had  yet 
to  be  passed — a  section  close  to  the  shore,  where 
the  water  was  deep  and  the  rocks  for  fording  few. 

"  Mind  your  footin'  here!  "  sang  out  the  camp- 
worker.  "  An'  if  you  slip,  look  out  thet  you  don't 
hurt  yourselves !  " 

He  was  splashing  along  in  water  up  to  his 
knees,  sometimes  on  the  rocks  and  then  again  on 
a  sandbar  running  in  that  direction.  Then  he  had 
to  make  a  turn,  to  avoid  a  deep  portion  of  the 
stream,  where  the  current  was  rapid. 


240      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

Ben  was  behind  the  man  and  Buster  was  just 
ahead  of  Dave.  As  all  struggled  along,  there 
came  an  extra  heavy  blast  of  wind,  followed  by 
a  perfect  deluge  of  rain. 

"  Oh!  "  screamed  Buster,  an  instant  later,  and 
peering  through  the  rain,  Dave  saw  him  suddenly 
throw  up  his  arms  and  slip  from  a  rock.  There 
was  a  splash,  and  poor  Buster  disappeared  from 
view. 

"  Buster  is  in  the  river!  "  yelled  our  hero,  and 
then  he  leaped  for  the  rock  from  which  the  stout 
youth  had  fallen.  He  looked  down  and  saw  an 
arm  and  a  head  come  up. 

"  Help !  hel "  came  from  the  unfortunate 

one,  and  then  the  swift  current  caught  him  and 
turned  him  over,  out  of  sight. 

"  Help !  "  yelled  Dave,  to  attract  the  attention 
of  those  ahead.  And  then,  as  he  saw  Ben  turn 
back,  he  slipped  down  on  the  rock  and  into  the 
swirling  river  and  struck  out  after  Buster. 


CHAPTER  XXV 


PERILS  OF  THE  FLOOD 


"Dave!  Dave!"  yelled  Ben,  as  he  saw  our 
hero  disappear  into  the  swiftly-flowing  river. 
"  Look  out,  or  you'll  both  be  drowned!  " 

"What's  the  trouble?"  yelled  Jerry  Blutt,  as 
he  turned  back  for  the  first  time  since  leaving  the 
island. 

"  Buster  slipped  in,  and  Dave  went  after  him," 
answered  Ben.  "  Oh,  what  shall  we  do?  "  he  went 
on,  despairingly. 

"  Here — we'll  throw  out  the  rope !  "  answered 
the  camp-worker,  and  took  from  his  shoulder  a 
rope  he  carried. 

In  the  meantime  Dave  had  come  up  and  was 
striking  out  with  might  and  main  for  his  chum. 
Our  hero  realized  that  Buster  must  be  hurt,  other- 
wise he  would  swim  to  save  himself. 

"  Must  have  struck  on  his  head,  when  he  went 
over,"  he  thought,  and  he  was  right,  poor  Buster 
had  done  just  that  and  now  lay  half-unconscious 
as  the  current  swept  him  further  and  further 
from  his  friends. 

241 


242      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

It  was  too  dark  to  see  much,  and  Dave  had  all 
he  could  do  to  keep  in  sight  of  the  unfortunate 
one.  But  presently  the  stout  youth's  body  struck 
against  a  rock  and  was  held  there,  and  our  hero 
came  up  and  seized  the  lad  by  the  arm. 

"Buster!  Buster!"  he  called  out.  "What's 
wrong?     Can't  you  swim?" 

"  Hel — help  me !  "  gasped  the  fat  youth.  "  I — 
I  got  a  knock  on  the  head.  I'm  so — so  dizzy  I 
do — don't  know  what  I — I'm  do — doing!  " 

The  current  now  tore  Buster  away  from  the 
rock,  and  he  and  Dave  floated  along  on  the  bosom 
of  the  river  for  a  distance  of  fifty  yards.  It  was 
impossible  to  do  much  swimming  in  that  madly- 
rushing  element  and  Dave  wisely  steered  for 
shore.  He  continued  to  support  his  friend,  who 
seemed  unable  to  do  anything  for  himself. 

At  length,  when  our  hero  was  all  but  exhausted, 
his  feet  struck  a  sandbar.  At  once  he  stood  up, 
finding  himself  in  water  that  reached  to  his 
waist.  He  caught  up  Buster  and  placed  the  weak- 
ened lad  over  his  shoulder.  In  a  dim,  uncertain 
way  he  saw  the  shore  loom  up  in  front  of  him, 
and  struck  out  in  that  direction. 

It  was  a  short  but  hard  struggle.  Twice  Dave 
went  down,  once  losing  his  hold  on  his  chum. 
But  he  got  up  each  time  and  went  after  Buster  in 
a  hurry.     Then  he  made  a  final  dash,  came  in 


PERILS  OF  THE  FLOOD  243 

contact  with  some  bushes,  and  hauled  himself  and 
his  burden  to  temporary  safety. 

All  was  dark  around  the  two  boys,  and  the 
rain  came  down  as  pitilessly  as  ever.  But  for 
this  they  did  not,  just  then,  care.  They  had  been 
close  to  death,  and  now  they  were  safe,  and  that 
counted  for  everything. 

Poor  Buster  had  received  a  severe  bump  on  the 
forehead  and  had  a  swelling  there  of  considerable 
size.  But  the  stunning  effect  was  passing,  and  he 
was  able  to  sit  up  and  peer  around  him. 

"  Oh,  what  a  crack  I  got,  when  I  fell  over!  " 
he  murmured,  and  then  he  added,  gratefully:  "  It 
was  a  fine  thing  for  you  to  jump  in  after  me, 
Dave!" 

"  Well,  I  couldn't  stand  there  and  see  you 
drown,  Buster,"  answered  our  hero.  "  I  had  to  do 
something." 

"  Where  are  the  others?  " 

"  Up  the  stream — unless  they  went  overboard, 
too." 

"  Then  I  suppose  we  ought  to  walk  that 
way." 

"  We  will — after  we  get  our  breath  and  you 
feel  strong  enough." 

"  Maybe  you  can  call  to  them?  " 

"  I'll  try." 

Dave  yelled  at  the  top  of  his  voice,  not  once  but 
several  times.    Presently  an  answering  hail  arose 


244      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

from  a  distance,  and  then  Ben  came  running  up, 
followed  by  Jerry. 

"Dave I     Buster!     Are  you  safe?" 

"  Yes,"  answered  both. 

"  Oh,  I  am  so  glad !  We  were  afraid  you  were 
both  drowned!     How  did  it  happen?  " 

The  two  told  their  story,  and  then  the  others 
told  how  they  had  thrown  out  the  rope  and  had 
seen  Dave  disappear  in  the  darkness  after  Buster. 

"  I  would  have  jumped  in,  too,  but  I  didn't  see 
how  I  could  do  any  good,"  went  on  Ben.  "  Jerry 
said  we  had  better  come  ashore  and  look  for  you 
down  here.  So  we  did  that.  My!  but  it's  a  fear- 
ful flood,  isn't  it!" 

"  Yes.  I  wish  we  knew  where  Phil  was,"  and 
Dave  heaved  a  deep  sigh.  Had  their  chum  lost 
his  life  in  that  rapidly-rising  river? 

"  Ain't  no  ust  to  stay  here — gitting  wetter  an' 
wetter,"  said  the  camp-worker,  after  a  pause. 
"  Besides,  if  that  flood  gits  wuss  it  is  bound  to 
come  up  here.  We  better  git  further  back — up 
the  hill." 

"Is  there  any  shelter  around  here?  I  mean 
on  high  ground?  "  asked  Dave. 

"  Yes,  I  know  of  a  cabin  up  on  the  hill,"  an- 
swered Buster.  "  I  don't  know  if  I  can  find  it  in 
the  rain  and  darkness,  but  I  can  try." 

He  walked  along,  through  the  trees,  until  he 
reached  a  footpath  running  up  from  the  shore. 


PERILS  OF  THE  FLOOD  245 

They  followed  the  path  for  about  a  hundred 
yards,  and  then  came  in  sight  of  a  long,  low, 
rambling  cabin,  the  home  in  years  gone  by  of  some 
lumbermen.  It  was  in  a  dilapidated  state,  with 
doors  and  windows  gone,  but  it  would  provide  a 
roof  over  their  heads,  and  that  was  something. 

Entering,  the  lantern  was  hung  on  a  nail, 
and  they  looked  around  them.  There  was  a  fire- 
place, with  some  dry  sticks  handy,  and  soon  they 
had  a  fire  started,  which  added  much  to  the  com- 
fort of  the  surroundings.  They  hung  up  the 
majority  of  their  wet  garments  and  sat  close  to 
the  blaze,  drying  themselves. 

"  If  I  only  knew  where  to  look  for  Phil,  I'd  go 
after  him,"  said  Dave.  "  But  to  look  for  him 
in  the  darkness  is  like  looking  for  the  proverbial 
needle  in  the  haystack." 

"  We'll  have  to  go  out  first  thing  in  the  morn- 
ing," returned  Ben. 

"  Yes,  as  soon  as  we  can  see,"  added  Buster. 

The  boys  who  had  run  away  were  anxious  to 
learn  what  Dave  had  to  say  about  affairs  at  Oak- 
dale,  and  in  a  low  voice,  while  the  camp-worker 
was  preparing  hot  coffee  and  something  to  eat,  he 
related  what  had  happened  since  their  departure. 

"  You  made  a  big  mistake  to  run  away,"  he 
said,  earnestly.  "  Just  because  you  did  that,  many 
folks  feel  sure  you  must  be  guilty.  You  ought  to 
go  right  back  and  face  the  music." 


246      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

"  I  guess  you  are  right,  Dave,"  answered  Ben, 
shamefacedly.  "  But  when  Phil  said  '  run,'  I 
didn't  stop  to  think,  but  just  got  out." 

"  And  that  is  what  I  did,  too,"  added  the 
stout  youth.  "  But  I  don't  blame  Phil  any  more 
than  I  blame  myself,"  he  added,  hastily. 

"  Nor  do  I,"  said  Ben.  "  We  made  a  big  mis- 
take. We  should  have  stood  our  ground,  like 
you  and  Roger  did." 

"  Well,  you  come  back  with  me,  and  we'll  face 
this  to  a  finish,"  went  on  our  hero.  "  But,  of 
course,  we've  got  to  find  Phil  first." 

Only  the  camp-worker  slept  well  that  night. 
The  boys  were  restless,  and  several  times  one  or 
another  got  up,  to  go  to  the  doorway  and 
listen,  thinking  he  had  heard  a  call  from  Phil. 
But  the  calls  were  only  imaginary,  and  morning 
dawned  without  a  sign  of  the  missing  one. 

It  was  still  raining,  but  not  so  hard  as  before, 
and  by  eight  o'clock  the  clouds  broke  away  and 
the  sun  commenced  to  shine.  All  had  an  early 
breakfast,  from  the  stores  brought  along,  and 
then  the  party  hurried  down  to  the  river. 

That  the  dam  above  Camptown  Falls  had 
broken  was  plainly  evident  on  all  sides.  During 
the  night  the  river  had  risen  seven  or  eight  feet, 
bearing  on  its  bosom  many  trees  and  bushes,  with 
here  and  there  the  remains  of  camps  that  had  been 
located  on  low  ground.     Moosetail  Island  had 


PERILS  OF  THE  FLOOD  247 

been  swept  from  end  to  end,  only  the  higher  spots 
escaping  the  flood.  The  waters  were  now  going 
down,  the  rush  from  the  broken  dam  having 
spent  itself. 

The  boys  gave  scant  heed  to  the  destruction 
effected  by  the  rain  and  the  broken  dam.  All 
their  thoughts  were  centered  on  Phil.  What  had 
become  of  their  chum?    Was  he  dead  or  alive? 

"  I  wonder  if  it  wouldn't  be  best  to  get  over 
to  the  island  and  look  around?  "  suggested  Dave. 
"  Most  likely  he  went  there — thinking  you  would 
be  at  the  cabin." 

"  But  how  are  we  to  get  to  the  island?  "  asked 
Buster.  He  had  no  desire  to  fall  into  the  tur- 
bulent stream  again. 

"  Oh,  the  water  is  going  down  rapidly,  Buster. 
I  think  we  can  make  it  by  noon." 

All  walked  up  and  down  the  river  bank,  looking 
in  vain  for  some  trace  of  the  shipowner's  son. 
Once  they  met  some  people  from  another  camp 
and  asked  about  Phil.  But  these  folks  shook 
their  heads. 

"  Didn't  see  a  soul,"  said  one  of  the  men. 

Jerry  Blutt  had  been  looking  the  situation 
over  carefully,  and  he  said  he  thought  they  could 
get  to  the  island  by  going  up  the  river  a  dis- 
tance. 

"  Then  the  current  will  help  us  along,  and  we 
won't  have   to   fight   so   hard,"   said   the   camp- 


248      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

worker.  He  did  not  like  the  idea  of  crossing  the 
water,  but  did  not  wish  to  desert  the  boys. 

On  the  trip  they  carried  the  rope,  with  Jerry  at 
the  head  and  Dave  at  the  rear.  All  took  tight 
hold,  so  that  if  one  slipped  the  others  might  pull 
him  up. 

"  Now,  take  it  easy,"  cautioned  the  camp  man. 
"  This  water  is  runnin'  putty  swift,  even  yet." 

He  had  mapped  out  a  course  with  his  eye,  and 
proceeded  slowly  and  cautiously.  Once  away 
from  the  shore,  they  felt  the  full  force  of  the  on- 
rushing  waters  and  were  all  but  swept  from  their 
feet.  It  was  well  that  they  were  a  good  distance 
above  Moosetail  Island,  for  to  reach  this  spot  by 
going  straight  out  in  the  stream  would  have  been 
impossible. 

It  was  a  long,  hard,  and  dangerous  trip,  and  all 
drew  a  deep  breath  of  relief  when  they  finally  set 
foot  on  the  island.  At  times  they  had  been  in 
water  up  to  their  waists  and  it  had  looked  as  if 
they  must  surely  be  swept  away.  Once  a  tree 
branch,  coming  swiftly  along,  had  caught  Dave 
and  literally  carried  him  off  his  feet  for  several 
yards. 

They  landed  at  one  end  of  the  island,  at  a  point 
where  the  bushes  were  still  two  feet  under  water. 
The  evidences  of  the  flood  were  on  every  hand, 
and  the  water  was  muddy  and  filled  with  broken- 
away  brushwood  and  trees. 


PERILS  OF  THE  FLOOD  249 

"  I  guess  we  had  better  strike  out  for  the 
camp,"  said  Dave.  "  Phil  would  go  there  if  he 
went  anywhere." 

As  they  advanced  one  or  another  gave  a  loud 
call.  But  no  answer  came  back,  and  this  made 
them  look  gravely  at  each  other.  Was  the  peril- 
ous trip  to  the  island  to  prove  a  vain  one? 

In  a  quarter  of  an  hour  they  came  in  sight  of 
the  camp.  The  cove  had  been  blotted  out,  and 
the  water  was  eddying  around  the  cabin  to  a  depth 
of  several  inches.  Mud  was  everywhere,  inside 
the  place  and  out,  and  this  showed  that  the  flood 
had  swept  the  spot  at  a  height  of  several  feet. 

"  We  might  have  stayed  here,"  was  Buster's 
comment.    "  It  didn't  hurt  the  big  tree." 

"  But  we  didn't  know  how  bad  it  was  going  to 
be,"  answered  Ben.  "  It  might  have  washed  away 
the  whole  island." 

"  Let  us  go  up  to  the  high  ground  and  look  for 
Phil,"  suggested  Dave.  "  Maybe  he  went  to  the 
highest  spot  he  could  find." 

The  others  agreed,  and  leaving  the  camp- 
worker  at  the  cabin,  the  boys,  led  by  Buster, 
tramped  through  the  wet  and  mud  to  a  little  hill. 
Again  they  set  up  their  calls,  but,  as  before,  no 
answer  came  back. 

"  I  don't  believe  he  came  here,"  said  Ben,  at 
last.     "  If  he   was   here   he  would   surely   hear 


250      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

"  Unless  he  was  hurt  and  couldn't  answer,"  re- 
turned Dave. 

From  the  top  of  the  little  hill  they  could  see 
both  ends  of  Moosetail  Island  and  also  both 
shores  of  the  river.  As  they  gazed  about  them, 
Dave  suddenly  gave  a  shout. 

"  Look!  look!  "  he  cried,  pointing  to  the  shore 
which  they  had  left  but  a  short  while  before. 
"  There  is  somebody  waving  a  handkerchief  at 
us!" 

"It's  Phil!"  returned  Ben. 

"Are  you  sure?  "  questioned  Buster.  "  I  can 
see  it  is  a  man  or  a  boy,  but  that  is  all." 

"  It  looks  like  Phil,"  said  Dave.  "  Oh,  I  hope 
it  is!" 


CHAPTER  XXVI 

BACK  TO  THE  SCHOOL 

They  waved  frantically  to  the  person  on  the 
shore,  and  he  waved  frantically  in  return,  and  at 
last  all  were  convinced  that  it  must  really  be  their 
missing  chum. 

"  He  must  think  I  am  Jerry,"  said  Dave. 
"  Won't  he  be  surprised  to  see  me!  " 

"  He  will  be,  unless  he  was  at  the  cabin  last 
night  and  read  the  note,"  returned  Buster. 

"  The  note  wasn't  touched,"  said  Ben.  "  I 
noticed  that  it  was  exactly  as  we  left  it." 

All  gave  a  parting  wave  and  pointed  to  the 
shore,  and  then  left  the  hill.  They  made  their  way 
down  to  the  cabin,  and  told  the  camp-worker 
what  they  had  seen. 

"  It  must  be  Lawrence,"  said  Jerry  Blutt. 
"  Maybe  he'll  come  over  here,  instead  of  waiting 
for  us  to  go  to  him." 

"Gracious,  I  never  thought  of  that!"  cried 
Buster. 

"  We'll  be  like  the  men  in  one  of  Shadow's 
stories,"  said  Ben.     "  One  was  upstairs  in  a  big 

251 


252      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

office  building  and  one  downstairs.  The  man  up- 
stairs went  down,  and  the  downstairs  man  went 
up,  and  they  kept  that  up  until  both  stopped, 
tired  out,  one  upstairs  and  one  down."  And 
the  others  had  to  smile  at  the  brief  yarn. 

All  journeyed  to  the  lower  shore  of  the  island, 
where  they  could  get  a  better  view  of  the  spot 
where  the  person  they  thought  was  Phil  had  been. 
They  saw  the  party  walking  up  the  river  bank, 
looking  for  a  good  place  to  ford.  All  shouted 
loudly  and  waved  their  hands  to  keep  him  where 
he  was,  and  he  nodded  his  head  deeply,  to  show 
that  he  understand. 

"It  must  be  Phil,"  said  Dave.  "Oh,  how 
thankful  I  am  that  he  wasn't  carried  away  by  the 
flood!" 

The  boys  were  impatient  to  get  back  to  the 
shore,  and  Jerry  Blutt  did  not  blame  them.  To 
carry  any  of  the  stuff  over  was  still  out  of  the  ques- 
tion, and  they  did  not  attempt  it. 

"  You  can  come  and  get  it  some  day,  Jerry," 
said  Buster.  "  You  can  ship  it  to  us  by  express, 
and  we'll  pay  you  for  your  trouble;"  and  so  it 
was  arranged. 

It  was  as  hard  to  gain  the  shore  as  it  had  been 
to  reach  the  island,  and  all  were  well-nigh  ex- 
hausted when  they  finally  left  the  water,  not  to 
return  again.  Phil  saw  them  coming,  and  when 
he  made  out  Dave  he  was  almost  dumfounded. 


BACK  TO  THE  SCHOOL  253 

"Where  in  the  world  did  you  come  from?" 
he  demanded,  as  he  caught  our  hero  by  the  hand. 

"  From  Oakdale,  Phil." 

"  Did  you  run  away,  too?  "  demanded  the  ship- 
owner's son. 

"  Hardly,"  answered  Dave,  with  a  grin.  "  I 
came  to  bring  you  fellows  back.  But  first  tell  us, 
how  did  you  get  out  of  the  flood  last  night?  " 

"  Oh,  I  had  a  fierce  time  of  it.  I  tried  to  get 
back  to  the  camp,  but  stumbled  over  some  tree- 
roots  and  went  down  in  a  hole  and  hurt  my  ankle. 
When  I  got  up  I  couldn't  see  the  others,  and  I 
must  have  lost  my  way.  Then  it  began  to  rain 
and  get  dark,  and  I  didn't  know  which  way  to 
turn.  I  yelled  dozens  of  times,  but  I  didn't  hear 
any  answer.  I  tried  to  locate  the  cabin,  but  I 
must  have  been  completely  turned  around,  for  I 
came  out  on  the  shore.  Then  the  flood  came 
along,  and  before  I  knew  it  I  was  floating  down 
the  river.  I  hit  a  tree  and  clung  to  that,  and 
we  drifted  a  mile  or  more  before  the  tree  got 
stuck  on  a  sandbar.  I  stayed  there,  in  the  rain 
and  darkness,  until  morning  and  then  waded  and 
swam  ashore.  I  was  so  tired  out  I  had  to  rest  for 
awhile,  and  then  I  came  up  here,  to  try  to  find  out 
something  about  our  crowd.  I  was  thinking  of 
getting  over  to  the  island  again  when  I  saw  you 
on  the  top  of  the  hill.  Of  course,  I  thought  Dave 
was  Jerry." 


254      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

"  We  were  scared  to  death,  thinking  you  had 
been  drowned,"  said  Ben. 

"  Well,  I  came  pretty  close  to  it,"  was  the  seri- 
ous reply.     "  No  more  such  flood  for  me!  " 

All  turned  towards  the  cabin  where  four  of 
the  party  had  spent  the  night,  and  there  Jerry 
was  called  on  to  prepare  the  best  meal  their  limited 
stores  afforded.  On  the  river-bank  they  had 
picked  up  some  fish  cast  up  by  the  flood,  and  these 
were  broiled,  making  a  welcome  addition  to  the 
meal. 

While  the  meal  was  being  prepared,  and  after 
it  had  been  eaten,  Dave  had  a  serious  talk  with 
Phil  and  the  others,  and  all  realized  the  folly  they 
had  committed  in  running  away  from  Oak  Hall. 
Phil  in  particular,  was  much  disturbed  and  said  he 
had  been  thinking  of  coming  back. 

"  But  we  saw  that  article  in  the  newspaper, 
and  it  scared  us,"  went  on  the  shipowner's  son. 
"  Of  course,  it  didn't  mention  any  names,  but  we 
knew  it  was  meant  for  us.  I  know  now,  just  as 
well  as  the  others,  that  it  was  a  mistake  to  run 
away." 

"Then,  you'll  go  back  with  me?"  questioned 
Dave,  eagerly. 
I  es. 

"And  you'll  go  back,  too,  Ben  and  Buster?" 

11  Yes." 

"  I  am  mighty  glad  to  hear  it — and  I  feel  that 


BACK  TO  THE  SCHOOL  255 

this  thing  will  come  out  all  right  in  the  end,"  re- 
turned Dave. 

"  By  the  way,  there  is  one  thing  I  haven't  told 
you,  Dave,"  said  Buster,  a  minute  later.  "  The 
general  excitement  drove  it  clean  out  of  my  head. 
We  know  who  it  was  that  spoiled  the  feast  Phil 
got  up  for  the  crowd." 

"  You  do?  "  asked  our  hero,  with  interest. 

"  Yes.  It  was  Nat  Poole.  He  went  to  Rock- 
ville  and  sent  those  telephone  messages  to  Jason 
Sparr  and  that  musical  professor,  calling  the  whole 
affair  off.  He  did  it  because  he  wasn't  invited  to 
take  part." 

"  How  did  you  learn  this?  " 

"  I  heard  it  the  night  I  went  to  the  Hall  to  get 
our  baggage.  When  I  was  in  hiding,  waiting  for 
a  chance  to  go  to  the  dormitory,  I  saw  Nat  Poole 
come  in,  along  with  that  new  student,  Will  Fasey. 
They  had  been  out  somewhere  having  a  good  time, 
and  Nat  was  telling  Fasey  how  he  had  sent  the 
telephone  messages  and  queered  the  feast.  I 
would  have  pitched  into  him  then  and  there  only 
I  didn't  dare  expose  myself,"  went  on  the  stout 
youth. 

"  But  he'll  get  what  is  coming  to  him  from  me, 
when  I  get  back  to  the  school,"  put  in  Phil.  "  It 
was  a  contemptible  piece  of  business,  and  I  want 
everybody  to  know  it.  Besides,  he  has  got  to  pay 
for  what  I  lost  by  the  transaction." 


256      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

"  If  it  wasn't  for  that,  maybe  we  wouldn't  have 
been  suspected  of  blowing  up  the  hotel,"  said 
Ben.  "  Then  you  really  think  the  wild  man  did 
it,  Dave?" 

11  Yes." 

"  But  what  of  that  letter  Jason  Sparr  got,  say- 
ing our  crowd  was  guilty?  " 

"  I  don't  know  what  to  make  of  that,  Ben.  I 
don't  think  the  wild  man  could  write  that." 

"  Would  Nat  Poole  be  bad  enough  to  do 
it?" 

"  Maybe.  But  it  was  an  awful  thing  to  do. 
I  didn't  think  Nat  would  be  as  mean  as  that." 

The  boys  had  dried  and  pressed  their  clothing 
as  best  they  could,  and  put  on  clean  collars,  cuffs, 
and  neckties,  and  therefore  looked  quite  present- 
able once  more. 

"  As  soon  as  we  get  to  town  we  can  get  cleaned 
up  a  little  better,"  said  Dave.  "  So  we  won't  look 
quite  like  tramps  when  we  return  to  the  Hall." 

"  I  hate  to  face  Doctor  Clay,"  remarked  Phil, 
dubiously. 

"  So  do  I,"  added  Ben  and  Buster. 

"  Well,  it  has  got  to  be  done,"  answered  Dave. 
"  So  make  the  best  of  it.  The  doctor  understands 
the  situation,  so  I  don't  think  he'll  be  hard  on 
you." 

"  I  hope  they  have  got  the  wild  man,  and  that 
they  prove  he  blew  up  the  hotel,"  said  Phil,  wist- 


BACK  TO  THE  SCHOOL  257 

fully.  "  That  is  the  only  thing  that  will  really 
clear  us." 

"  Oh,  they  are  bound  to  get  the  wild  man  sooner 
or  later,"  answered  Dave,  hopefully. 

It  was  decided  to  take  the  one  afternoon  train 
from  Camptown  Falls,  and  at  the  proper  time 
the  boys  walked  to  the  little  depot,  Dave  with 
his  suit-case,  and  the  others  with  some  hand  bag- 
gage. Instructions  were  left  with  Jerry  Blutt  re- 
garding the  other  baggage,  and  the  man  was  paid 
for  his  services.  He  said  he  was  glad  that  no- 
body had  been  drowned  in  the  flood,  and  added 
that  he  was  going  up  to  the  broken-away  dam  later 
on  to  see  how  matters  looked. 

It  was  a  rather  quiet  crowd  that  got  aboard  the 
train  when  it  came  along.  The  conductor  wanted 
to  know  how  they  had  fared  in  the  flood,  and  they 
told  him.  At  Lumberport  the  boys  had  to  wait  an 
hour  for  the  next  train  to  Oakdale  Junction,  and 
they  spent  the  time  in  getting  a  good  supper,  and 
in  having  their  shoes  shined,  and  in  brushing  up 
generally. 

"  I'll  be  glad  to  get  back  late  at  night,"  said 
Phil  to  Dave.  "  I'd  hate  to  have  the  whole  crowd 
staring  at  us  when  we  came  in." 

At  the  Junction  they  waited  but  a  few  minutes, 
and  the  run  to  Oakdale  did  not  take  long.  They 
were  the  only  ones  to  get  off  at  the  depot,  and 
the  spot  was  all  but  deserted.     But  they  had  tele- 


258      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

graphed  ahead,  and  Horsehair  was  on  hand,  with 
a  carriage,  to  meet  them. 

"  Glad  to  see  you  young  gents  back,  indeed  I 
am,"  said  the  school  driver. 

"  Any  news,  Horsehair?  "  asked  Dave,  as  they 
piled  into  the  carriage. 

"  Not  as  I  know  of." 

"Have  they  got  that  wild  man  yet?"  ques- 
tioned Phil. 

"  No,  sir.  But  they  seen  him — along  the  river 
— day  before  yesterday.  He  was  sleepin'  in  a 
barn.  But  he  got  away  before  the  farmer  and 
his  man  could  git  him." 

"Where  was  that?"   questioned  Ben. 

"  Up  to  the  Morrison  place." 

"  The  Morrison  place,"  mused  Buster.  "  I 
know  that  family.  When  I  get  a  chance  I  am 
going  to  ask  them  about  this,"  he  added. 

When  the  boys  arrived  at  Oak  Hall  they  found 
Doctor  Clay  sitting  up  to  receive  them.  He  smiled 
at  Dave,  but  was  somewhat  cold  towards  the 
others. 

"  It  is  too  late  to  listen  to  what  you  have  to  say 
to-night,"  said  he.  "  All  of  you  may  report  in  my 
office  directly  after  our  opening  exercises  in  the 
morning." 

When  the  boys  went  upstairs  there  were  a  good 
many  exclamations  of  surprise,  and  Roger  and  the 
others  wanted  to  ask  innumerable  questions.    But 


BACK  TO  THE  SCHOOL  259 

a  monitor  cut  all  talk  short,  and  Dave  and  the 
runaways  got  to  bed  as  quickly  as  possible. 

All  were  up  early,  and  Dave,  Phil,  and  the 
others  had  to  tell  their  story  before  going  down 
to  breakfast.  Roger  and  those  who  had  been  left 
behind  with  him  listened  eagerly  to  the  tale  of  the 
flood  and  the  other  happenings. 

"  I  guess  Dave  got  there  just  in  time,"  said  the 
senator's  son.     "How  about  it,  Buster?" 

"  He  sure  did,"  said  the  stout  lad,  and  shud- 
dered to  think  how  close  he  had  been  to  drowning. 

It  can  well  be  imagined  that  Phil,  Ben,  and 
Buster  did  not  have  much  appetite  for  breakfast. 
Phil  looked  around  for  Nat  Poole,  but  the  money- 
lender's son  had  not  yet  returned  to  the  school. 

"  Now,  tell  me  everything,"  said  Doctor  Clay, 
when  the  boys  at  length  filed  into  his  office.  "  As 
they  say  in  court,  we  want  the  truth,  the  whole 
truth,  and  nothing  but  the  truth." 

"  And  that  is  what  I'm  going  to  give  you,  Doc- 
tor Clay,"  answered  Phil.  "  I  made  a  big  mistake 
in  running  away,  and  I  am  glad  Dave  came  to 
bring  us  back.  I  haven't  done  anything  wrong, 
and  I  am  here  to  face  the  music,  as  the  saying 
goes." 

"  And  so  am  I,"  came  from  Ben  and  Buster. 

Then  the  boys  told  their  story  in  detail,  omit- 
ting nothing,  and  Dave  related  how  he  had  gone 
to  Camptown  Falls,  and  how  the  flood  had  caught 


260      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

him.  In  the  midst  of  the  narrative  came  a  sharp 
knock  on  the  door. 

"  Come  in,"  said  the  doctor,  and  one  of  the 
servants  entered. 

"  A  man  to  see  you,  sir,"  said  the  servant. 
"  He  says  it  is  very  important — something  about 
that  wild  man,  sir!     He's  terribly  excited,  sir!  " 

"  The  wild  man  again!  "  murmured  the  master 
of  the  school,  while  the  boys  looked  at  him  and  the 
servant  with  interest.  "  Show  the  visitor  in  and  I 
will  hear  what  he  has  to  say." 


CHAPTER  XXVII 

THE   TRAIL   THROUGH    THE   WOODS 

In  a  minute  the  servant  ushered  in  a  farmer 
whom  the  boys  recognized  as  Henry  Morrison,  a 
man  who  had  a  farm  along  the  river-front,  about  a 
mile  from  Oak  Hall. 

"  Good-morning,  sir,"  said  the  farmer,  bow- 
ing to  the  doctor  and  then  to  the  boys.  "  Excuse 
me  for  being  in  such  a  hurry,  but  I  thought  you 
would  like  to  know." 

"  I'll  be  glad  to  hear  what  you  have  to  say, 
Mr.  Morrison,"  replied  the  master  of  the  school. 
"  Sit  down,"  and  he  pointed  to  a  handy  chair. 

"  It's  about  that  wild  man,  Doctor  Clay!  "  ex- 
claimed the  farmer,  dropping  into  the  seat  and 
mopping  his  forehead  with  his  handkerchief. 
"  It's  something  terribul,  the  way  he  carries  on. 
He  'most  scared  my  wife  to  death!  " 

"  He  has  been  to  your  place  again?  " 

"  Yes,  sir,  last  night.  He  was  in  the  barn,  and 
he  jumped  out  at  my  wife  and  said  he  was  going  to 
blow  the  fort  to  pieces!  She  got  so  scared  she 
dropped  her  pailful  of  milk  and  ran  to  the  house. 

261 


262      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

I  got  mad  and  got  my  shotgun,  but  the  fellow 
had  skipped  out  before  I  could  catch  sight  of 
him." 

"What  time  was  this?  " 

"  Just  about  six  o'clock.  But  that  ain't  all. 
This  morning  I  started  for  town,  intending  to  tell 
the  constable  and  the  justice  about  it,  when  all  of 
a  sudden,  when  I  was  passing  the  end  of  your 
property,  I  see  the  wild  man  down  there,  behind 
a  tree." 

"  Just  now?  "  asked  Dave,  eagerly. 

"  Not  more'n  a  quarter  of  an  hour  ago.  That's 
why  I  stepped  in  here.  He's  a  dangerous  man, 
Doctor  Clay,  and  I  think  he  ought  to  be  rounded 
up !  "  went  on  Henry  Morrison,  earnestly. 

"  You  are  right,  he  certainly  ought  to  be  put 
under  restraint,"  answered  the  master  of  Oak 
Hall.  "  I  will  see  to  this  at  once.  Will  you  assist 
in  the  hunt,  Mr.  Morrison?  " 

"  Of  course — if  I  don't  have  to  go  alone.  I 
don't  think  it  is  safe  for  anybody  to  tackle  him 
alone,  he's  that  wild  and  dangerous." 

"  Can  we  take  part  in  the  search?  "  asked  Phil, 
eagerly.  "  Oh,  do  let  us  do  it,  Doctor  Clay!  "  he 
pleaded. 

"  I  suppose  so,  if  you  will  promise  to  be  care- 
ful. Mr.  Morrison,  can  you  point  out  the  exact 
spot  where  you  saw  the  man?" 

"  Of  course  I  can." 


THE  TRAIL  THROUGH  THE  WOODS      263 

"  Then  we  will  at  once  make  up  a  searching 
party." 

Doctor  Clay  could  act  quickly  when  the  occasion 
demanded,  and  inside  of  ten  minutes  a  searching 
party  was  made  up,  composed  of  Dave  and  his 
chums,  Mr.  Dale,  Horsehair,  and  several  men 
who  chanced  to  be  working  around  the  grounds. 

"  Oh,  I  hope  we  catch  him  and  are  able  to  prove 
that  he  blew  up  the  hotel  dining-room,"  said  Phil 
to  Dave. 

"  So  do  I,  Phil." 

Henry  Morrison  led  the  way,  and  it  was  not 
long  before  the  spot  was  gained  where  he  had  seen 
Wilbur  Poole.  From  that  point  a  path  ran  from 
the  river  back  into  the  woods. 

"  Maybe  he  took  that  path,"  suggested  our 
hero,  and  several  thought  the  same. 

"  I  think  we  had  better  scatter,"  suggested  Mr. 
Dale,  who  had  been  placed  in  charge  by  the  doc- 
tor. "  By  doing  that  we  can  cover  a  wide  range 
of  territory  in  a  comparatively  short  space  of 
time.  And  keep  as  quiet  as  possible,  for  should 
he  hear  us  he  will  most  likely  start  and  run." 

"  If  he  didn't  run  when  he  saw  Mr.  Morrison," 
murmured  Buster.  "  He  may  be  miles  away  al- 
ready." 

The  crowd  separated  into  pairs,  Dave  and  Phil 
going  together  and  Roger  going  with  Ben,  and 
Buster  with  Horsehair.    All  had  armed  themselves 


264      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

with  sticks,  and  Mr.  Dale  carried  a  pair  of  hand- 
cuffs, and  one  of  the  hired  men  had  a  rope. 

Deeper  and  deeper  into  the  woods  went  the 
party,  spread  out  in  a  long  line.  They  had  ex- 
amined the  river-front  and  felt  fairly  certain  that 
the  wild  man  had  not  left  by  boat. 

"  Looks  like  a  wild-goose  chase,"  remarked 
Phil,  with  a  sigh,  after  a  half  an  hour  had 
passed. 

"  Oh,  we  don't  want  to  give  up  yet,"  answered 
Dave.  "  Why,  it  isn't  much  after  ten  o'clock. 
We  can  stay  out  till  noon,  at  least." 

"  I'd  stay  out  all  day,  if  I  thought  we  could 
catch  him,"  returned  the  shipowner's  son, 
promptly. 

Presently  the  boys  espied  a  small  stone  house, 
standing  beside  a  brook  which  flowed  through 
the  woods  into  the  river.  In  the  house  lived  an 
old  man  who  made  his  living  by  making  baskets 
and  fancy  articles  of  birch  bark. 

"  Let  us  see  if  old  Herick  is  around,"  suggested 
Dave.    "  He  may  be  able  to  tell  us  something." 

They  found  the  old  man  hard  at  work  on  a 
fancy  basket.  He  looked  surprised  when  thus 
suddenly  confronted  by  the  students. 

"  Did  I  see  a  wild  man?  "  he  queried,  in  reply 
to  their  question.  "  I  guess  I  did, — at  least  he 
acted  queer  enough.  He  danced  up  here,  made  a 
deep  bow,  and  told  me  the  army  would  be  along 


THE  TRAIL  THROUGH  THE  WOODS      265 

in  four  minutes.  Then  he  made  another  bow  and 
walked  off,  as  stiff  as  a  drum-major." 

"  When  was  this?  "  demanded  Dave. 

"  About  half  an  hour  ago." 

"And  which  way  did  he  go?"  put  in  Phil, 
eagerly. 

"  That  way,"  and  the  old  basket-maker  pointed 
up  the  brook.  "  Walked  right  in  the  water,  too. 
I  was  going  to  follow  him  at  first  but  then  I  didn't 
think  it  was  any  use." 

The  boys  waited  to  hear  no  more,  but  telling 
old  Herick  to  watch  for  the  other  searchers  and 
tell  them  about  the  wild  man,  they  set  off  up  the 
brook  as  fast  as  they  could  travel. 

As  the  chums  progressed  they  looked  to  the 
right  and  left,  wondering  if  Wilbur  Poole  had 
kept  to  the  tiny  watercourse  or  taken  to  the  woods, 
which  were  now  exceedingly  dense. 

"I  see  his  footprints!"  cried  Phil,  as  they 
passed  a  sandy  stretch.  "  Anyway,  those  marks 
look  fresh." 

u  I  fancy  you  are  right,  Phil,  and  if  so,  he  can't 
be  very  far  ahead  of  us." 

They  went  on,  following  the  windings  of  the 
stream  until  it  became  less  than  a  foot  wide.  It 
came  to  an  end  at  a  number  of  springs  among  the 
rocks. 

"  Fine,  cold  water,"  announced  Dave.  "  Here 
is  a  chance  for  a  good  drink,  Phil." 


266      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

Both  were  drinking  their  fill  when  a  loud  voice 
suddenly  challenged  them. 

"  Ha !     What  are  you  doing  at  my  fountain?  " 

Both  looked  up  hurriedly  and  saw  the  wild  man 
standing  on  the  highest  of  the  rocks.  He  had  his 
arms  folded  and  was  glaring  at  them  sternly. 

"Oh!"  murmured  Phil.  "Say,  Dave,  there 
he  is!     What  shall  we  do?  " 

"  Let  us  try  to  make  friends  with  him,"  sug- 
gested Dave.  "  If  we  don't,  he  may  run  away, 
and  he  can  easily  do  that  in  these  thick  woods." 

"  If  we  could  only  notify  the  others !  " 

"  You  can  go  back  if  you  wish,  while  I  talk  to 
him." 

"Aren't  you  afraid?" 

"  Oh,  I  reckon  I  can  take  care  of  myself,"  an- 
swered Dave. 

"  Do  you  not  know  I  gave  a  million  dollars  for 
these  fountains?  "  went  on  the  wild  man. 

"  Well,  they  are  worth  it,"  answered  Dave, 
calmly.  "  It  is  very  good  water.  Why  don't 
you  have  it  bottled,  Mr.  Poole?  " 

"Who  calls  me  Poole?  I  am  the  King  of 
Sumatra.     My  army  is  following  me." 

"  To  blow  up  another  fort,  I  suppose,"  said 
Phil,  as  he  commenced  to  back  away. 

"  Yes." 

"  Then  I  must  go,  for  I  don't  want  to  be  blown 
up,"  and,  so  speaking,  Phil  commenced  to  retreat. 


THE  TRAIL  THROUGH  THE  WOODS      267 

"  The  fort  is  not  here — it  is  in  Oakdale,  close 
to  the  other  fort,"  said  the  wild  man,  and  now  he 
came  down  from  the  big  rock  and  stood  quite 
close  to  Dave.  There  was  a  strange  look  of  cun- 
ning in  his  eyes,  and  Dave  had  to  shiver,  although 
he  did  his  best  to  keep  calm. 

"  In  Oakdale,"  said  Dave,  slowly.  "  Say,  you 
blew  up  that  hotel  fort  in  fine  shape,  didn't  you?  " 

"Ha!  ha!  so  I  did!  But  I  was  discovered, 
worse  luck,  I  was  discovered!  "  continued  the  wild 
man,  with  a  sad  shake  of  his  head.  "  The  enemy 
saw  me!  " 

"  Somebody  saw  you?  "  queried  our  hero,  with 
interest. 

"  Yes,  worse  luck.  But  it  shan't  happen  again. 
Next  time  I  shall  go  masked.  I  have  my  mask 
here."  And  Wilbur  Poole  pulled  from  his  pocket 
a  mask  made  of  a  bit  of  blue  cloth.  "  I  will  show 
you  how  I  wear  it."  And  he  fastened  it  over  his 
face  by  means  of  a  couple  of  strings. 

"  Fine  !  fine  !  "  cried  Dave,  in  pretended  delight. 
He  wished  to  humor  the  man  until  Phil  returned 
with  the  others.  "  It  couldn't  be  better.  You 
ought  to  patent  that  kind  of  a  mask." 

"  I  will  patent  it  soon,  after  the  other  fort  is 
down." 

"  You  just  said  somebody  saw  you  when  you 
blew  up  the  other,"  continued  our  hero.  "  Who 
was  it?  " 


268      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

"  Ha !  that  is  a  state  secret.  Only  the  cabinet 
must  know  of  it — the  cabinet  and  the  man  who 
makes  shoes." 

"  I  am  sorry  you  won't  let  me  in  on  your 
secrets,"  said  Dave.  "  I  want  to  help  you.  Won't 
you  hire  me  as  a  clerk?  " 

"  How  much  do  you  want  a  week?  "  demanded 
the  wild  man,  in  a  business-like  tone. 

"  How  much  will  you  give?  " 

"  To  a  good  clerk  forty  dollars." 

"  Then  I'll  take  the  job." 

"  Very  good.  Your  name  is  Crusoe,  isn't  it — 
Robinson  Crusoe?  " 

"  You've  got  it." 

"  If  I  give  you  the  job,  you  must  have  your  hair 
shaved  off,"  continued  the  wild  man,  looking  at 
Dave's  hair  critically. 

"  All  right,  I'll  have  that  done  when  we  reach 
a  barber  shop." 

"It  isn't  necessary  to  wait!"  cried  Wilbur 
Poole.     "  I  am  a  barber." 

"You?" 

"  To  be  sure — I  have  a  certificate  from  the 
Emperor  of  Siam.    See  here !  " 

The  wild  man  put  his  hand  into  an  inner  pocket 
and  suddenly  brought  forth  a  pair  of  long  shears. 

"  I  can  cut  your  hair  and  shave  you,"  he  an- 
nounced. "  Just  sit  down  on  yonder  throne  and 
I'll  start  to  work."    And  he  pointed  to  a  flat  rock. 


THE  TRAIL  THROUGH  THE  WOODS      269 

The  sight  of  the  sharp-pointed  shears  was  not  a 
pleasant  one,  and  when  the  wild  man  invited  him 
to  sit  down  Dave  felt  very  much  like  running 
away.  The  man  evidently  saw  how  he  felt,  and 
suddenly   caught  him  by  the   arm. 

"Sit  down!"  he  thundered.  "I  won't  hurt 
you.    I  am  an  expert  barber." 

"  Let  us  talk  about  the  job  first,"  said  Dave, 
trying  to  keep  his  wits  about  him,  although  he  was 
terribly  disturbed.  He  wondered  how  long  it 
would  be  before  Phil  would  return. 

"  What  do  you  want  to  know  ?  " 

"  Will  you  cut  my  hair  in  the  latest  fashion?  " 

"  I  never  cut  hair  in  any  other  way." 

"  And  will  you  curl  the  ends?     I  like  curls." 

"  If  you  want  them,  although  they  make  a  man 
look  girlish,"  answered  the  wild  man. 

"  And  will  you "  went  on  Dave,  when  Wil- 
bur Poole  suddenly  grabbed  him  by  both  arms 
and  forced  him  backwards  on  the  flat  rock. 

"  I'll  go  to  work  at  once !  "  cried  the  wild  man. 
"  Sit  still !  "  And  he  flourished  the  shears  before 
our  hero's  face. 

Dave  felt  a  chill  run  down  his  backbone.  But 
a  moment  later  he  felt  a  thrill  of  relief,  as  from 
the  bushes  behind  the  wild  man  stepped  Phil,  Mr. 
Dale,  and  several  others. 


CHAPTER  XXVIII 

THE   CAPTURE   OF   THE  WILD  MAN 

"  Now  then,  you  may  go  to  work,"  said  our 
hero,  as  he  saw  Mr.  Dale  come  up  close  behind 
the  wild  man.  "  But  sharpen  the  scissors  first, 
please." 

"  I  will,"  was  Wilbur  Poole's  answer,  and  he 
opened  up  the  shears  and  commenced  to  stroke 
them  back  and  forth  on  a  rock  near  by. 

An  instant  later  the  wild  man  was  jerked  over 
backwards  and  the  dangerous  shears  were 
snatched  from  his  grasp.  He  commenced  to  strug- 
gle, but  the  whole  crowd  surrounded  him,  and 
before  he  could  realize  the  situation  his  hands 
were  made  fast. 

"  It  is  treachery,  base  treachery!  "  he  groaned. 
"  My  army  has  betrayed  me !  "  And  he  com- 
menced to  weep. 

"What  a  terrible  state  of  mind  to  be  in!" 
murmured  Roger.  "  He  is  certainly  as  crazy  as 
they  make  'em !  " 

"  I  guess  you  are  right,"  answered  Phil.  "  But 
I  am  glad  we  have  got  him." 

270 


An  instant  later  the  wild  man  was  jerked  over  backwards. 
Page  270. 


THE  CAPTURE  OF  THE  WILD  MAN      271 

"  He  spoke  about  the  blowing  up  of  the  hotel," 
said  Dave.  "  And  he  said  somebody  saw  him 
do  it." 

"Who  was  it?" 

"  He  didn't  mention  any  names." 

"  Maybe  he  was  simply  wandering  in  his  mind," 
suggested  Ben. 

"  I  don't  think  so,"  returned  Dave.  "  I  think, 
if  he  was  questioned  long  enough,  we  could  get 
the  truth  out  of  him.  He  doesn't  seem  to  be 
crazy  all  the  time." 

"  It's  a  terrible  thing  for  the  Poole  family — to 
have  such  a  crazy  man  in  it,"  was  Buster's  opin- 
ion; and  the  other  lads  agreed  with  him. 

The  prisoner  was  marched  along  the  brook,  past 
the  home  of  old  Herick,  and  then  down  the  river- 
road.  By  this  time  all  the  searchers  had  come 
together,  including  Henry  Morrison  and  some 
outsiders. 

"  I'm  mighty  glad  you've  got  him,"  said  the 
farmer.  "  And  I  hope  he  don't  get  away  from 
you." 

"  He  won't  get  away,"  answered  Mr.  Dale. 

"  The  women  of  this  district  have  been  afraid 
to  go  out  alone,"  went  on  Henry  Morrison. 
'  They'll  be  glad  to  know  he's  been  captured." 

"  We'll  have  to  let  the  Pooles  know  right 
away,"  said  Dave. 

"  I  fancy  Doctor  Clay  will  send  a  telegram," 


272      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

answered  Mr.  Dale.  "  And  in  the  meanwhile 
we'll  have  to  take  the  prisoner  to  the  Oakdale 
lockup." 

It  was  nearly  noon  when  the  crowd  reached  Oak 
Hall.  The  wild  man  had  but  little  to  say.  His 
capture  had  evidently  broken  his  spirit,  and  he 
was  inclined  to  cry.  But  when  Doctor  Clay  asked 
him  if  he  would  like  to  have  something  to  eat,  he 
brightened  up  wonderfully. 

"  It  is  a  sad  case,"  said  the  master  of  the  Hall. 
"  But  under  proper  treatment  I  think  he  can  be 
cured." 

The  news  quickly  circulated  throughout  the 
school  that  the  wild  man  had  been  caught  and  that 
he  was  Wilbur  Poole,  an  uncle  to  Nat,  and  all  the 
boys  were  anxious  to  catch  a  sight  of  the  strange 
individual.  The  teachers  and  servants  were  like- 
wise curious,  and  looked  at  him  as  he  ate  his 
dinner  in  a  corner  of  the  dining-hall,  surrounded 
by  those  who  had  captured  him  and  who  were 
watching,  to  see  that  he  did  not  get  away.  He  was 
not  allowed  to  use  a  knife  and  fork,  but  his  food 
was  cut  up  for  him  and  served  with  a  spoon. 

The  only  person  at  Oak  Hall  who  did  not  come 
in  to  see  the  wild  man  was  Job  Haskers.  When 
asked  about  this,  the  dictatorial  teacher  shrugged 
his  shoulders. 

"  Some  of  the  boys  are  wild  enough  for  me," 
he  said.    "  I  want  nothing  to  do  with  the  insane." 


THE  CAPTURE  OF  THE  WILD  MAN      273 

"  It  is  a  sad  case,"  said  the  teacher  who  was 
addressing  Job  Haskers. 

"  There  are  many  just  as  bad,"  responded  the 
other,  coldly.  "  It  is  up  to  the  Poole  family  to 
look  after  that  man  and  see  that  he  doesn't  break 
out  again." 

It  was  decided  to  take  the  wild  man  down  to 
Oakdale  in  the  school  carryall,  to  be  driven  by 
Horsehair.  Mr.  Dale  was  to  go  along,  and  so 
were  Phil,  Dave,  Ben,  Buster,  and  Doctor 
Clay. 

The  carryall  was  brought  around  to  the  side 
entrance  of  the  school,  and  Wilbur  Poole  was  told 
that  he  was  about  to  take  a  ride  through  the  coun- 
try. He  walked  through  the  hallway  willingly 
enough,  but  suddenly,  on  turning  a  corner,  set  up 
a  shout. 

"You!  you!  I  have  found  you  at  last!  "  he 
cried,  rushing  forward.  "  You  are  the  one  who 
exposed  me!  Base  soldier  that  you  are!  You 
have  ruined  the  whole  army!  "  And  in  a  sudden 
fit  of  passion  he  ran  up  to  Job  Haskers  and  caught 
him  by  the  throat. 

"  Le — let  g-g-go !  "  gasped  the  teacher,  and 
tried  to  shake  the  man  off.  Then  the  others  ran 
up,  and  Wilbur  Poole  was  dragged  back  and  hand- 
cuffed. 

"  Do  you  know  that  man?  "  asked  Dave,  struck 
by  a  sudden  idea. 


274      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

"  Yes  !  yes !  "  groaned  the  wild  man.  "  He  ex- 
posed me  !    The  army  is  lost !  " 

"  How  did  he  expose  you?  " 

"  He  saw  me  do  it." 

"  Do  what?  " 

"  Blow  up  the  fort-hotel.  Oh,  what  a  base  vil- 
lain he  was  to  look  on !  "  groaned  the  wild  man, 
and  suddenly  commenced  to  weep. 

"  What  is — the — er — man  talking  about?  " 
stammered  Job  Haskers,  and  all  saw  him  turn 
pale. 

"  He  says  you  saw  him  blow  up  Sparr's  place," 
said  Dave,  pointedly. 

"  It  is  false,  absurd!  "  said  the  teacher.  "  I — 
er — I  never  saw  the  rascal  before." 

"  He  isn't  a  rascal,  Mr.  Haskers.  He  is 
simply  out  of  his  mind,"  remonstrated  Mr. 
Dale.  "  He  is  not  accountable  for  his  ac- 
tions." 

"  Well,  he  ought  not  to  say  such  things,"  re- 
turned the  dictatorial  teacher. 

"  You  saw  me — you  know  you  did!  "  cried  Wil- 
bur Poole.  "You  spoiled  everything!  I  might 
have  blown  up  many  forts  if  it  hadn't  been  for 
you!  "     And  he  shook  his  head  dolefully. 

u  Take  him  away,"  said  the  teacher,  and  turned 
his  back  on  the  wild  man. 

"  Dave,  I  think  the  wild  man  speaks  the 
truth !  "  whispered  Phil  to  our  hero. 


THE  CAPTURE  OF  THE  WILD  MAN      275 

"  Possibly,  Phil.  I  think  the  matter  will  bear 
investigation." 

"  And  if  old  Haskers  saw  the  thing  done,  why 
didn't  he  tell  about  it.  Do  you  think  that  let- 
ter  " 

"  It  struck  me  that  such  might  be  the  truth, 
Phil.    But  don't  say  anything  until  you  are  sure." 

"  He  was  down  on  us — ever  since  we  men- 
tioned that  affair  with  the  Widow  Breen,"  went 
on  the  shipowner's  son. 

"  I'd  like  to  see  that  letter  Jason  Sparr  got — 
saying  we  were  guilty,"  returned  our  hero. 
"  Maybe  Doctor  Clay  can  get  hold  of  it." 

All  the  way  to  Oakdale  the  boys  spoke  of  the 
case  in  whispers.  Phil  was  quite  sure  Job  Has- 
kers had  seen  Wilbur  Poole  blow  up  the  hotel  and 
equally  sure  that  the  dictatorial  teacher  had  writ- 
ten the  letter  to  the  hotel-keeper  stating  he,  Dave, 
and  their  chums  were  guilty. 

"  He  thought  we'd  be  locked  up,  or  at  least  that 
we'd  be  sent  away  from  the  school  and  he  would 
be  rid  of  us,"  said  Phil.  "  He  is  growing  afraid 
of  us !  Oh,  if  we  can  prove  that  he  did  it,  I'll 
make  it  hot  for  him!  " 

"  If  he  did  such  a  thing  as  that,  he  ought  to 
be  discharged  from  Oak  Hall,"  was  Ben's  com- 
ment. 

"  I'll  get  my  father  to  sue  him  for  damages," 
put  in  Buster. 


276      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

"  Well,  don't  be  hasty,"  advised  Dave. 
"  There  may  be  some  mistake — although  I  think 
not." 

At  Oakdale,  Wilbur  Poole  was  turned  over  to 
the  authorities,  who  placed  him  in  a  comfortable 
room  attached  to  the  lockup.  As  it  was  known 
that  he  was  insane,  he  could  not  be  counted  a 
criminal,  and  the  majority  of  the  people  pitied 
him  and  hoped  that  some  day  he  would  be  restored 
to  his  right  mind. 

A  telegram  was  sent  to  the  Poole  family,  and 
the  next  day  came  a  reply  that  some  men  would 
come  to  take  Wilbur  Poole  away  to  a  sanitarium. 
It  was  established  beyond  a  doubt  that  he  had 
used  the  dynamite  to  blow  up  the  dining-room  of 
Sparr's  hotel,  and,  consequently,  our  hero  and  his 
chums  were  cleared  of  that  charge,  much  to  their 
satisfaction. 

"  I  wonder  if  Nat  will  come  back? "  said 
Shadow.  "  I  should  think  he  would  hate  to 
do    it." 

"  I  don't  think  he  will,"  said  Luke. 

"  What  will  you  do  if  he  does  come  back, 
Phil?"  asked  Gus. 

"  I  don't  know,  Gus.  Of  course,  I'll  let  him 
know  what  I  think  of  him  for  spoiling  my  plans 
for  a  spread.  But  I  hate  to  be  hard  on  him,  be- 
cause of  this  disgrace  about  his  uncle." 

"  Yes,  that's  a  terrible  thing,"  was  Chip  Mack- 


THE  CAPTURE  OF  THE  WILD  MAN      277 

lin's  comment.  "  I'd  hate  to  have  a  crazy  man 
in  my  family." 

"  Well,  such  things  can't  be  helped,"  put  in 
Polly  Vane.  "  The  Poole  family  will  have  to 
make  the  best  of  it." 

It  was  several  days  later  when  Nat  Poole 
showed  himself.  Phil  and  Dave  did  not  see  him 
until  later,  and  both  were  struck  by  the  change  in 
his  appearance.  He  looked  haggard  and  much 
older,  and  his  arrogance  was  completely  gone. 

"  Got  back,  eh?  "  said  Phil,  walking  up  to  him. 

"  Yes,"  returned  the  money-lender's  son,  and 
his  voice  sounded  hollow. 

"  What  have  they  done  with  your  uncle,  Nat?  " 
asked  Dave,  kindly. 

"  Put  him  in  another  sanitarium,  where  he  will 
have  the  best  of  care  and  doctoring." 

"  I  hope  he  gets  well." 

"  We  all  hope  that."  Nat  swallowed  a  lump 
in  his  throat  and  then  looked  gloomily  at  Phil. 
"  Well,  you  got  the  best  of  me,"  he  said,  shortly. 

"  How  the  best  of  you?  "  demanded  the  ship- 
owner's son. 

"  I  understand  you  found  out  about  that 
spread." 

"  I  did." 

"  Well,  I'll  pay  for  the  damage  done — as  soon 
as  I  get  the  money.  I  haven't  any  now — Dad's  got 
too  much  to  pay  on  Uncle  Wilbur's  account."    Nat 


278      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

swallowed  another  lump  in  his  throat.  "  I'm 
sorry  I  did  it  now,  Phil,  honest  I  am,"  he  went  on, 
brokenly. 

"  Well,  if  that's  the  case,  let  us  drop  the  mat- 
ter, Nat,"  was  the  instant  reply.  "  I  don't  be- 
lieve in  hitting  a  fellow  when  he  is  down.  You 
haven't  got  to  pay  me  anything.  The  whole  thing 
is  past  and  gone, — and  that  ends  it." 

"  Thank  you."  Nat  wanted  to  say  something 
more,  but  his  voice  suddenly  broke  and  he  turned 
away  to  hide  his  emotion,  and  then  walked  away. 

"  He's  hit  and  hit  hard,"  said  Roger,  in  a  low 
voice. 

"  And  you  did  well  to  drop  that  matter,  Phil," 
added  Dave.  "  Maybe  Nat  has  learned  a  lesson 
he  won't  easily  forget." 

Dave  was  right  about  the  lesson  Nat  Poole 
had  learned.  He  was  deeply  humiliated,  both 
by  the  exposure  concerning  the  feast  and  by  what 
had  been  learned  concerning  his  insane  uncle,  and 
for  a  long  time  was  quite  another  boy. 

It  may  be  added  here  that  at  a  new  sanitarium, 
and  under  first-class  medical  treatment,  a  marked 
change  came  over  Wilbur  Poole,  and  in  less  than  a 
year  he  was  completely  cured  of  his  weakminded- 
ness.  With  a  nurse  as  a  companion  he  went  into 
the  country  to  rest  both  body  and  mind,  and  later 
on  came  out  into  the  world  again  as  well  as  any- 
body.    Strange  to  say,  he  remembered  nothing 


THE  CAPTURE  OF  THE  WILD  MAN      279 

of  calling  himself  the  King  of  Sumatra,  nor  of 
blowing  up  Jason  Sparr's  hotel.  But  others  did 
not  forget  about  the  blowing  up,  and  the  damage 
done  had  to  be  settled  for  by  Mr.  Aaron  Poole, 
who  was  his  brother's  guardian  and  manager  of 
his  estate  for  the  time  being. 


CHAPTER  XXIX 

A  BIT  OF   EVIDENCE 

"  Dave,  what  do  you  make  of  this?  " 

"  Well,  to  tell  the  truth,  Phil,  I  don't  think 
much  of  it." 

"  You  don't  think  it  is  a  clew?  " 

"Do  you?" 

"  It's  rather  faint,  I  must  confess." 

"  Oh,  I  don't  think  there  is  anything  to  it,"  de- 
clared Ben. 

"  There  is  something,  but  not  a  great  deal," 
came  from  Roger.  "  I  don't  see  how  you  are  go- 
ing to  follow  it  up." 

This  talk  between  the  boys  occurred  after  Dave, 
Phil,  Ben,  Roger,  and  Buster  had  called  upon 
Jason  Sparr  and  the  justice  and  insisted  on  seeing 
the  letter  the  hotel  man  had  received  which  stated 
that  the  boys  were  guilty  of  blowing  up  the  dining- 
room  of  his  hostelry. 

The  hotel  man  had  treated  them  kindly,  for  he 
was  in  dread  that  the  boys  would  get  their  folks 
to  sue  him  for  damages.  He  had  offered  to  pay 
back  the  money  taken  from  Phil  for  the  spread, 

280 


A  BIT  OF  EVIDENCE  281 

and  the  shipowner's  son  had  taken  the  amount,  to 
which  he  was  justly  entitled. 

The  examination  of  the  letter  had  revealed 
next  to  nothing.  It  was  evidently  written  in  a 
disguised  hand,  but  some  of  the  letters  looked 
like  Job  Haskers's  handwriting.  In  the  corner  of 
the  paper  some  sort  of  an  advertisement  had  been 
torn  off,  only  the  letters,  "  blisher  "  showing. 

"  I  think  those  letters  are  part  of  the  word, 
(  Publisher'  "  Dave  had  said.  "  This  letter  was 
evidently  penned  by  somebody  who  used  some 
publisher's  blank." 

"  Maybe  Job  Haskers  had  those  blanks,"  Phil 
had  exclaimed.  "  Remember,  he  said  he  pub- 
lished or  was  going  to  publish  something  once 
upon  a  time." 

The  boys  talked  it  over,  but  could  reach  no 
conclusion.  Jason  Sparr  told  how  the  letter  had 
come  to  him,  but  this  added  no  new  light  on  the 
subject. 

"  Well,  it  was  a  nasty  trick,  no  matter  who 
played  it,"  said  Dave. 

"  I  sha'n't  rest  until  I  find  out  who  did  it,"  re- 
torted Phil. 

All  were  resolved  to  watch  Job  Haskers  and 
also  Nat  Poole.  But  while  doing  this  they  had  to 
turn  once  more  to  their  studies.  Phil,  Ben,  and 
Buster  had  to  work  harder  than  ever,  and  so  did 
Dave,  to  make  up  for  the  time  lost  during  their 


282      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

absence.  But  Doctor  Clay  was  kind  to  them,  and 
for  once  Job  Haskers  did  not  say  anything,  al- 
though he  showed  that  he  expected  them  to  "  toe 
the  mark,"  as  Roger  expressed  it. 

Several  weeks  slipped  by,  and  during  that  time 
Oak  Hall  played  several  games  of  ball.  One 
game  of  importance  was  won,  and  this  was  cele- 
brated in  a  befitting  manner.  Dave  attended  the 
games,  and  so  did  Phil  and  Roger,  but  none  of 
the  three  allowed  the  sport  to  interfere  with  their 
studies.  All  were  "  in  the  grind,"  and  resolved 
to  graduate  that  coming  June  with  the  highest 
possible  honors. 

During  those  days  Dave  received  many  letters 
from  home.  His  folks  and  friends  were  glad  to 
know  that  the  wild  man  had  been  captured  and 
the  mystery  of  the  blowing-up  cleared  away.  Jes- 
sie sent  him  a  very  warm  letter  in  particular,  con- 
gratulating him  for  bringing  back  the  runaways, 
and  saying  she  hoped  he  would  have  no  more 
trouble  during  the  final  term  at  Oak  Hall.  She 
added  that  she  and  all  the  others  expected  to 
come  to  the  school  at  graduation  exercises. 

"  Now  it  is  up  to  me  to  make  good,"  said  Dave, 
after  reading  this  letter  several  times.  "  Dad 
expects  it,  and  Jessie,  and  everybody,  and  I  am 
not  going  to  disappoint  them." 

But  it  was  no  light  task  to  remain  at  the  top  of 
the  senior  class,  or  even  near  it,  for  there  were 


A  BIT  OF  EVIDENCE  283 

bright  seniors  in  plenty,  including  the  studious 
Polly  Vane,  who  seemed  the  brightest  of  all.  But 
Dave  plugged  away,  day  after  day,  resolved  to 
keep  at  it  until  the  very  last.  He  was  writing  on 
his  theme  and  had  it  about  half  finished. 

"  One  month  more  and  it  will  all  be  over  but 
the  shouting,"  said  Roger  one  day,  as  he  came  into 
the  room  where  Dave  was  studying. 

"  All  over  but  the  shouting  or  weeping,"  re- 
turned Phil,  who  was  present.  "  I  am  afraid  some 
of  the  fellows  will  do  more  weeping  than  cheer- 
ing," he  added,  grimly. 

"  Let  us  hope  that  everybody  passes,"  said 
Dave,  looking  up  with  a  quiet  smile. 

"  Such  a  thing  has  never  been  done,"  said  Ben. 
"  Somebody  is  bound  to  drop  by  the  wayside — I 
hope  it  isn't  yours  truly,"  and  he  sank  his  head 
again  into  his  book. 

"  I  think  old  Haskers  is  commencing  to  tighten 
the  screws  again,"  said  Buster.  "  He  let  up  for  a 
while,  after  the  wild  man  was  caught,  but  yester- 
day and  to-day — phew!  we  caught  it,  didn't  we?  " 

"  We  sure  did!  "  cried  Phil.  "  I  can't  under- 
stand that  man.  Why  is  he  a  teacher  when  he 
just  naturally  hates  boys?  " 

"  That's  a  conundrum  that  can't  be  answered," 
said  the  senator's  son. 

"  Well,  we  won't  weep  on  leaving  him,"  re- 
marked Luke,  dryly. 


284      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

"  Say,  that  puts  me  in  mind  of  a  story,"  said 
Shadow.  "  Once  on  a  time  a  man  in  an  auto  ran 
into  a  boy  carrying  a  cat  in  a  basket.  He  didn't 
hurt  the  boy  much  but  he  killed  the  cat.  Says  he, 
'  I  am  sorry,  my  boy,  and  I'll  pay  you  for  the 
cat.  How  much?'  'I — I  don't  know,'  blub- 
bered the  boy.  '  Will  two  dollars  do?  '  asked  the 
man.  '  Yes,'  says  the  boy,  and  took  the  money. 
i  Were  you  taking  the  cat  home?  '  asked  the  man, 
when  he  was  ready  to  drive  on.  '  No,'  said  the 
boy.  '  I  was  going  to  take  him  down  to  the 
canal  and  drown  him !  '  "  And  there  was  a  smile 
over  Shadow's  yarn. 

It  had  been  a  blustery  day,  and  as  night  came 
on  the  wind  increased  in  violence,  until  it  fairly 
howled  around  Oak  Hall.  It  tore  through  the 
branches  of  the  oaks  that  gave  the  place  its  name, 
until  it  looked  as  if  some  of  the  trees  might  be 
broken  off  by  the  fury  of  the  elements. 

"  My  gracious !  I  never  saw  such  a  wind !  "  cried 
Roger,  as  he  came  in  from  a  trip  to  the  gym- 
nasium. 

"  It  must  be  fierce  at  sea,"  returned  Dave,  who 
was  with  him.  "  I  am  glad  I  am  on  shore.  The 
newspapers  will  tell  about  wrecks  along  the  coast 
to-morrow." 

Nobody  thought  of  going  out  that  evening,  and 
the  boys  put  in  the  time  studying  and  reading. 
The  windows  rattled,  and  occasionally  a  shutter 


A  BIT  OF  EVIDENCE  285 

banged,  and  a  good  night's  rest  seemed  out  of  the 
question. 

"  My,  what  a  night  for  a  fire !  "  remarked  Phil, 
while  he  and  his  chums  were  undressing. 

"  Don't  mention  such  a  thing!  "  returned  Ben, 
with  a  shiver.  "  It  would  burn  down  every- 
thing!" 

At  last  the  boys  retired.  A  few  dropped  off 
to  sleep,  but  Dave  was  not  one  of  them.  He  had 
studied  hard  and  was  restless,  and  the  fury  of  the 
elements  added  to  his  nervousness. 

At  last  he  could  stand  it  no  longer  to  remain  in 
bed,  and  got  up  to  sit  in  an  easy-chair  for  awhile. 

He  was  just  crossing  the  dormitory  floor  when 
there  came  an  extra  heavy  blast  of  wind  outside, 
followed  by  a  crash,  as  one  of  the  giant  oaks 
standing  close  to  the  school  building  was  broken 
off  near  the  top.  Then  came  another  crash,  a 
jingling  of  glass,  and  a  sudden  wild  cry  for  help. 

"  Hello,  something's  gone  through  a  window!  " 
Dave  muttered.    "  Maybe  it's  in  the  next  room !  " 

He  ran  to  the  window  and  looked  out.  Just 
below  the  window-sill  he  saw  some  branches  of  the 
broken  tree.  He  looked  down  and  noted  that  the 
tree-top  had  gone  into  the  window  of  the  room 
below. 

"  What's  the  row?  "  cried  Roger,  springing  up 
and  rubbing  his  eyes. 

"  Is  the  roof  caving  in?  "  asked  Phil. 


286      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

"  Some  tree-branches  came  down  and  went 
through  the  window  right  below  us,"  answered 
Dave.    "Listen!" 

All  did  so,  and  heard  the  cry  for  help  re- 
peated. 

"  It's  Job  Haskers  calling!  "  said  the  senator's 
son.    "  He  uses  the  room  below  us  now." 

"  Let  us  see  if  he  is  hurt,"  suggested  another 
of  the  boys. 

Clad  in  their  pajamas,  the  boys  flocked  out 
into  the  hallway,  there  to  be  joined  by  others. 
Word  was  passed  around  of  what  had  occurred, 
and  all  made  their  way  to  the  door  of  the  in- 
structor's apartment.  They  heard  him  yelling 
for  help  with  all  his  might. 

The  door  was  locked,  and  Dave  and  some 
others  put  their  shoulders  to  the  barrier  and 
forced  it  open.  All  was  dark  in  the  room,  and 
the  wind  was  rushing  around,  sending  books,  pic- 
tures, and  other  things  in  all  directions. 

Several  matches  were  struck,  and  at  last  a  shel- 
tered light  was  lit.  Doctor  Clay,  Mr.  Dale,  and 
some  of  the  other  teachers  had  now  arrived,  and 
instructors  and  students  gazed  curiously  at  the 
scene  before  them. 

The  top  of  the  tree  had  come  straight  through 
the  big  window  of  the  apartment,  crashing  down 
on  a  bureau  and  a  writing-desk,  smashing  both 
flat.     Some  branches  of  the  tree   rested  on  the 


"  Help  me!     Save  me!  "  spluttered  the  terror-stricken 
teacher. — Page  287. 


A  BIT  OF  EVIDENCE  287 

side  of  the  bed,  pinning  Job  Haskers  against  the 
wall,  as  if  in  a  cage. 

"  Help  me!  Save  me!  "  spluttered  the  terror- 
stricken  teacher.  "  I  am  being  crushed  to 
death!" 

"All  hands  to  the  tree!  "  shouted  Mr.  Dale, 
and  showed  what  he  meant.  Boys  and  men  took 
hold  of  the  tree-branches  and  pulled  them  to  one 
side. 

"Are  you  much  hurt,  Mr.  Haskers?"  asked 
Doctor  Clay,  kindly. 

"  I — I  don't  know,  I  think  so !  "  gasped  the 
teacher.  His  face  was  white  and  he  was  shiver- 
ing from  fright. 

"  Can't  you  crawl  under  the  branches?  "  asked 
Mr.  Dale.     "  Here,  come  this  way." 

He  showed  how  it  could  be  done,  and  trembling 
from  head  to  feet,  the  scared  teacher  got  out  from 
under  the  tree-top.  His  face  and  one  shoulder 
were  scratched,  but  otherwise  he  appeared  to  be 
unhurt.  But  all  were  forced  to  acknowledge  that 
he  had  had  a  narrow  escape. 

"  You  had  better  take  one  of  the  spare  rooms, 
Mr.  Haskers,"  said  Doctor  Clay,  as  another 
blast  of  wind  swept  through  the  room.  "  You 
cannot  remain  here,  with  this  tree-top  in  the  room. 
And  I  am  afraid  we  shall  have  to  saw  it  up  to  get 
it  out  again.  You  can  be  thankful  that  your  life 
has  been  spared." 


288      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

"The  furniture  is  smashed!"  murmured  the 
teacher. 

"  Never  mind  the  furniture,  so  long  as  you  are 
not  hurt.  It  can  be  mended,  and  all  the  window 
needs  is  some  new  sash." 

"  My  things  have  been  scattered,"  grumbled 
the  teacher.     "A  perfect  mess!" 

"  Leave  it  until  morning — you  can  do  nothing 
to-night,"  said  the  doctor;  and  so  it  was  finally 
decided,  and  teachers  and  pupils  trooped  off  to  bed. 
The  broken-in  door  was  closed,  but  it  could  not 
be  locked. 

The  boys  had  scarcely  gotten  back  to  the  dormi- 
tories when  Dave  called  Phil,  Ben,  Roger,  and 
Buster  to  one  side. 

"  Now  is  our  chance,"  he  whispered.  "  Did 
you  notice  that  the  bureau  and  the  writing-desk  in 
Haskers's  room  were  smashed  ?  It  may  not  be  the 
most  honorable  thing  to  do,  but  I  think  we  are 
justified  in  looking  his  things  over  and  seeing  if 
we  can't  find  some  clew  to  that  letter  Jason  Sparr 
received." 

"  Right  you  are!  "  declared  Phil,  promptly,  and 
the  others  said  practically  the  same. 

They  waited  until  the  other  boys  had  retired 
once  more,  and  then,  at  a  signal  from  Dave,  all 
filed  silently  into  the  hallway  again  and  tip- 
toed their  way  to  the  room  below.  Soon  they 
were  inside  and  had  the  light  lit,  and  also  a  Ian- 


A  BIT  OF  EVIDENCE  289 

tern  which  belonged  to  Ben's  bicycle,  and  which 
he  had  chanced  to  have  on  hand. 

Silently  and  with  great  care  the  boys  went  over 
the  many  things  that  had  been  scattered  over  the 
floor — wearing  apparel,  books,  pads,  papers,  and 
various  articles  of  more  or  less  value.  Presently 
Phil  gave  a  low  cry. 

"  Look  at  this  !  "  And  he  held  up  several  sheets 
of  paper.    In  one  corner  were  the  words: 

LATIN  MADE  EASY 

JOB  HASKERS,  Publisher, 

Albany,  N.  Y. 

"It's  the  same  paper!"  cried  Dave.  "  He 
tore  the  corner  off  so  that  just  the  letters  '  blisher ' 
remained." 

"  That's  pretty  good  evidence,"  said  Roger. 

"  I  should  say  it  was!  "  cried  Ben.  "  Wonder 
what  he  will  have  to  say  about  it,  when  we  con- 
front him  with  it?  " 

"  Let  us  look  for  more  evidence,  while  we  are 
at  it,"  came  from  Buster.  And  then  the  midnight 
search  continued. 


CHAPTER  XXX 

THE  EXPOSURE — GOOD-BY  TO  OAK  HALL 

"  Doctor  Clay,  we  must  see  you  about  some- 
thing that  is  very  important." 

Thus  spoke  Dave,  the  next  morning,  as  he  and 
his  chums  filed  into  the  doctor's  private  office 
after  the  opening  of  the  school.  Job  Haskers 
was  not  at  his  class,  but  in  his  room,  straightening 
out  his  things,  while  some  men  had  been  sent  up, 
to  get  rid  of  the  tree-top  and  repair  the  window. 
The  storm  was  a  thing  of  the  past,  and  no  other 
damage  of  importance  had  been  done. 

"  Very  well,  boys,"  returned  the  master  of  the 
school,  kindly.  "  Come  in  and  let  me  know  what 
it  is." 

The  students  came  in,  rather  awkwardly  it  must 
be  admitted,  for  they  had  much  on  their  minds 
and  did  not  know  just  how  the  worthy  doctor 
would  take  it.  But  they  had  decided  on  a  course 
of  action,  and  they  had  given  their  word  to  stick 
together  to  the  end.  Dave,  as  the  natural  leader, 
had  been  chosen  spokesman. 

"  Doctor  Clay,  we  want  to  bring  up  a  subject  of 
290 


GOOD-BY  TO  OAK  HALL  291 

great  importance,"  said  Dave.  "  Important  to 
us,  and  to  you,  and  to  the  whole  school.  The 
boys  have  asked  me  to  speak  for  them  and  for 
myself." 

"About  what?"  demanded  the  master,  some- 
what shortly. 

"  About  Mr.  Haskers  and  how  he  has  treated 
us." 

"  What  has  he  done  now?  " 

"  It  isn't  what  he  has  done  now,  Doctor  Clay, 
it  is  what  he  did  some  time  ago — did  his  best  to 
get  us  into  grave  trouble,"  answered  Dave, 
warmly.  "  You'll  remember  the  letter  Mr.  Sparr 
got,  stating  we  were  guilty  of  trying  to  blow  up 
his  hotel.  We  are  now  satisfied  that  Mr.  Has- 
kers penned  that  letter — in  fact,  we  have  the  evi- 
dence to  prove  it." 

"Impossible!" 

"  No,  sir,  it  is  true,  and  I  dare  him  to  deny  it. 
It  is  an  absolute  fact,  Doctor  Clay,  and  we  have 
come  here  this  morning  to  inform  you  that  we 
can  no  longer  attend  a  school  where  he  is  a 
teacher,"  went  on  Dave,  firmly. 

"  But — but  you — er — you  astound  me,  Porter! 
Tell  me  what  you  know,  or  think  you  know." 

In  a  plain,  straightforward  manner  Dave  men- 
tioned the  letter  and  the  printing  that  had  ap- 
peared on  it.  Then  he  told  how  he  and  his  chums 
had  searched  the  bedroom  after  the  tree-top  crash 


292      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

and  found  the  sheets  of  paper  with  that  same  print- 
ing, and  he  produced  them. 

"  And  we  also  found  these,  in  a  corner  of  the 
broken  writing-desk,"  he  continued.  "  Some  writ- 
ing by  Mr.  Haskers,  in  which  he  practiced  back- 
hand. This  writing  is  just  like  that  which  appears 
in  the  letter  Mr.  Sparr  got.  Compare  the  two  and 
you  will  see  we  are  right.  Wilbur  Poole  said  Mr. 
Haskers  saw  him  blow  up  the  hotel,  and  he  told 
the  truth,  even  if  he  is  weak-minded." 

"  But  why  should  Mr.  Haskers  do  such  an  out- 
rageous thing?  "  asked  the  master  of  Oak  Hall. 

"  I  will  tell  you  why,  sir,"  returned  Dave,  and 
related  the  affair  of  the  Widow  Breen.  "  That 
made  him  very  sore  on  us,  and  he  wanted  to  get 
us  out  of  the  school.  At  first  he  tried  it  by  over- 
working us  in  our  lessons,  and  when  he  found 
that  that  didn't  work  he  tried  this  game  of  mak- 
ing out  that  we  were  criminals." 

"  Yes,  but — but  would  a  teacher  of  mine  stoop 
so  low?"  murmured  the  worthy  doctor,  shaking 
his  head  doubtfully. 

"  No  ordinary  teacher  would,  Dr.  Clay.  But 
Mr.  Haskers  is  not  an  ordinary  man — he  is  very 
dictatorial  and  harsh,  and  he  hates  boys  even 
though  he  has  to  teach  them.  He  isn't  a  bit  like 
Mr.  Dale,  or  the  others." 

"  We  never  had  any  trouble  with  any  teacher 
but  Haskers,"  put  in  Phil. 


GOOD-BY  TO  OAK  HALL  293 

"  And  if  we  have  to  leave  Oak  Hall  I'm  going 
to  get  my  father  to  sue  Haskers  for  damages," 
added  Roger. 

A  talk  lasting  the  best  part  of  an  hour  followed, 
and  at  last  the  worthy  doctor  had  his  eyes  opened 
to  the  unworthiness  of  his  assistant.  He  scanned 
the  sheets  of  paper  and  the  writing  the  boys  had 
brought  with  interest. 

"  You  are  right — this  is  Mr.  Haskers's  hand," 
he  said,  slowly.  "  But  is  it  the  same  hand  that 
wrote  that  villainous  letter  to  Mr.  Sparr?" 

"  Compare  the  two  and  you  will  see  that  we  are 
right,"  answered  Dave. 

"I  will,"  answered  the  doctor;  and  a  little 
later  he  set  off  for  Oakdale  in  his  buggy,  going 
alone. 

The  boys  walked  down  to  the  gymnasium,  re- 
solved to  keep  out  of  all  classes  until  the  matter 
had  been  settled.  They  had  impressed  it  on  Doc- 
tor Clay's  mind  that  either  Job  Haskers  must 
leave  the  school  or  they  would  do  so. 

It  was  nearly  noon  when  the  master  of  Oak 
Hall  came  back,  driving  slowly  and  looking  very 
thoughtful.  The  boys  met  him  at  the  entrance 
to  the  grounds  and  he  told  them  to  come  to  the 
office,  and  closed  the  door  carefully  behind  them. 

"  You  were  right,"  he  said,  almost  brokenly. 
"  I  have  been  deceived  by  this — this — I  do  not 
know  what  to  call  him !    It  will  make  a  great  stir 


294      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

when  the  truth  is  known — and  it  will  hurt  the 
school,"  he  added,  with  a  sigh. 

"  Why  should  we  make  a  stir  about  it?  "  asked 
Dave,  quickly.  "  Let  him  go,  that  is  all  we  ask. 
He  can  resign." 

"  No,  the  truth  must  come  out,"  was  the  firm 
reply.  "  He  shall  not  shelter  himself  behind  you, 
even  for  the  benefit  of  the  school.  I  have  already 
told  the  authorities  the  facts  in  the  case.  If  they 
wish  to  arrest  him  they  can  do  so,  and  you  may 
appear  against  him,  if  you  wish." 

"  When  will  you  tell  him?  "  asked  Phil,  as  there 
came  a  brief  pause. 

"  At  once !  And  I  wish  you  to  be  present  and 
hear  what  is  said,"  returned  Doctor  Clay.  He 
rang  a  bell  and  a  servant  appeared.  "  Tell  Mr. 
Haskers  to  come  here  immediately." 

There  was  silence  after  this,  the  boys  not  know- 
ing what  to  say,  and  the  master  of  the  school  be- 
ing busy  with  his  thoughts.  Presently  the  door 
opened  and  Job  Haskers  came  in,  with  a  look  of 
curiosity  on  his  face. 

"  You  sent  for  me,  Doctor?  "  he  inquired. 

"  I  did,  Mr.  Haskers,"  was  the  cold  reply.  "  I 
want  your  resignation,  and  I  want  it  at  once !  " 

The  master  of  Oak  Hall  had  gotten  to  his  feet 
and  the  two  men  stood  facing  each  other.  Doc- 
tor Clay  had  his  jaw  set,  and  never  had  the  stu- 
dents seen  him  look  so  determined.     He  was  no 


GOOD-BY  TO  OAK  HALL  295 

longer  a  kindly  schoolmaster,  he  was  a  judge,  and 
a  stern  judge  at  that. 

"  You — you  want  my  resignation?  "  faltered 
Job  Haskers. 

"  Yes,  and  at  once." 

"Why?" 

"  Because  you  are  not  fit  to  teach  here — you  are 
not  fit  to  teach  anywhere!  "  thundered  the  doctor. 
"  I  want  your  resignation,  and  then  I  want  you  to 
leave  just  as  soon  as  you  possibly  can." 

"  But — but — I  want  you  to  explain.  I 
want " 

"  It  is  not  necessary  for  me  to  explain,  Has- 
kers. You  have  been  found  out.  You  are  a  des- 
picable villain,  and  you  ought  to  be  in  jail.  I 
trusted  you,  and  you  have  deceived  me.  More 
than  that,  you  have  tried  to  get  these  young  gen- 
tlemen into  serious  trouble.  Don't  deny  it,  for  it 
will  do  no  good.  We  have  the  absolute  proof 
against  you,  and  those  proofs  are  also  in  the  hands 
of  the  law.  If  you  don't  want  to  be  arrested,  you 
will  leave  this  school  as  soon  as  you  can  get  your 
baggage  packed." 

"  Sir,  I  want  you  to  know "  commenced  Job 

Haskers,  but  stopped  short,  for  Doctor  Clay  had 
taken  a  stride  forward  and  was  shaking  a  finger  in 
the  teacher's  face. 

"  I  will  not  argue  with  you,  Haskers.  For  a 
long  time  I  have  not  been  satisfied  with  your  work, 


296      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

for  you  did  not  seem  to  have  the  students'  interest 
at  heart.  You  have  a  good  education.  But  a 
teacher  must  have  more  than  that — he  must  have 
a  heart  for  his  work.  Now  you  are  found  out, 
and  I  want  nothing  more  to  do  with  you.  I  will 
give  you  a  check  for  what  is  due  you  up  to  to-day, 
and  you  will  sign  a  receipt  in  full,  and  also  your 
resignation,  and  then  I  never  want  to  see  or  hear 
of  you  again." 

"And  suppose  I  won't  resign?"  snarled  the 
teacher.     "  I  have  a  contract " 

"  If  you  don't  get  out,  you'll  go  to  jail." 

"  And  we'll  sue  you,"  Dave  could  not  help  put- 
ting in. 

"  That's  right,  we'll  push  the  case  as  far  as  the 
law  allows,"  added  Phil. 

"  Ha!  you  think  you  are  smart,  but  you  don't 
know  it  all,"  snarled  the  teacher,  but  his  manner 
showed  his  uneasiness.  He  attempted  to  argue, 
but  Doctor  Clay  would  not  listen,  and  when  he 
said  he  would  send  for  a  constable,  Job  Haskers 
quickly  capitulated,  signed  his  resignation,  took  his 
check,  and  hurried  away  to  pack  his  baggage.  He 
left  about  an  hour  later,  by  the  back  way,  so  that 
none  of  the  students  saw  him  go.  An  hour  after 
that  a  man  came  for  his  trunks  and  bags;  and  that 
was  the  last  seen  or  heard  of  him  at  Oak  Hall. 

"Hurrah!  "  cried  Dave,  when  the  affair  was 
at  an  end.     "  How  glad  I  am  that  Haskers  is 


GOOD-BY  TO  OAK  HALL  297 

gone!  I  feel  as  if  a  weight  had  been  taken  from 
my  head!  " 

"  I  guess  everybody  will  be  glad,"  returned 
Roger,  and  he  was  right.  Some  of  the  students 
wanted  to  get  up  a  celebration  in  honor  of  the 
unpopular  teacher's  departure,  but  this  was  not 
permitted.  But  the  boys  had  a  time  on  the  quiet, 
and  thoroughly  enjoyed  it. 

With  the  going  away  of  Job  Haskers,  and  the 
clearing  up  of  the  mystery  surrounding  the  letter, 
Oak  Hall  settled  down  once  more  to  its  normal 
condition.  Another  teacher  came  to  take  the 
place  of  the  man  who  had  left,  and  he  proved 
popular  all  around,  and  made  Doctor  Clay  won- 
der why  he  had  not  made  a  change  long  before. 

With  their  minds  free  from  worry,  Dave  and 
his  chums  buckled  down  to  their  lessons,  and  our 
hero  spent  much  time  over  his  paper  on  "  The 
Future  of  Our  Country."  Soon  the  examinations 
started,  and  then  the  boys  fell  to  worrying  over 
how  they  would  fare  in  this  final  test. 

"  Well,  I  hope  I  pass,"  remarked  Phil,  when 
the  last  examination  was  over.  "  I  don't  expect 
to  be  near  the  top.  I  lost  too  much,  going  to 
Cave  Island,  and  when  I  ran  away." 

"  Me  for  the  passing  mark,  too,"  chimed  in 
Ben. 

"  Well,  I  am  hoping  for  something  better,"  said 
Roger. 


298      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

"  What  about  you,  Dave?  "  queried  Buster. 

"  I  am  like  Roger,  hoping  for  something  bet- 
ter," answered  our  hero,  with  a  smile.  "  But 
I'm  prepared  to  take  what  comes,"  he  added. 

At  last  came  the  day  when  the  announcements 
were  to  be  made.  Dave  had  sent  in  his  theme 
and  he  expected  to  hear  from  this  as  well  as  from 
his  studies.  In  the  meantime,  preparations  were 
going  forward  for  the  graduation  exercises,  and 
visitors  were  expected  from  far  and  near. 
Nearly  all  the  folks  from  Crumville  were  coming, 
and  also  the  parents  of  Phil,  Roger,  and  the  other 
seniors. 

The  big  assembly  room  was  crowded  when  the 
announcements  were  made.  The  passing  mark 
was  seventy-five  per  cent.,  and  many  of  the  boys 
dreaded  to  think  that  they  might  be  below  that. 

"  I  will  read  the  names  in  the  order  of  merit," 
said  Doctor  Clay,  after  the  opening  exercises. 
"  Only  two  boys  have  failed  to  pass  for  gradua- 
tion, and  they  will  be  conditioned,  if  they  so  de- 
sire. I  am  proud  of  the  record."  And  then  the 
master  of  the  school  proceeded  to  read  the  list. 
Polly  Vane  and  Dave  had  each  ninety-six  per  cent, 
Roger  had  ninety-four,  Shadow  ninety,  Sam  and 
Luke  each  eighty-eight,  Phil  eighty-seven,  Gus 
eighty-six,  and  so  on  down  to  Buster,  who 
squeezed  through  with  seventy-eight.  pThe  boys 
who  had  failed  to  pass  were  Nat  Poole,  who  had 


GOOD-BY  TO  OAK  HALL  299 

only  sixty-eight,  and  one  of  his  cronies,  who  was 
marked  sixty-nine. 

"  It  ain't  fair!  I  did  as  well  as  lots  of  'em," 
said  Nat,  when  the  reading  was  over.  But  nobody 
listened  to  him,  for  all  knew  that  the  examina- 
tions had  been  just  in  every  particular. 

"  I  will  now  announce  the  prizes  for  the  best 
themes  on  the  subject,  '  The  Future  of  Our  Coun- 
try,' "  went  on  Doctor  Clay.  "  The  reading  of 
the  nine  papers  handed  in  has  afforded  me  great 
pleasure,  for  all  are  good  and  many  of  them  ex- 
cellent. But  I  think  the  best  of  all  is  that  written 
by  David  Porter,  and  the  committee  of  teachers 
who  have  examined  the  papers  agree  with  me. 
Porter,  I  congratulate  you,  and  I  will  now  ask  you 
to  come  forward  and  read  your  meritorious  com- 
position to  your  fellow-students." 

And  amid  a  general  handclapping  our  hero 
went  to  the  platform  and  commenced  to  read  the 
theme.  Everybody  listened  with  close  attention, 
and  loud  was  the  applause  when  he  had  con- 
cluded. It  was  certainly  a  fine  paper,  and  later  on 
Doctor  Clay  had  it  published  in  one  of  the  school 
journals,  where  it  attracted  not  a  little  attention. 

Dave  was  certainly  happy  and  he  had  good  rea- 
son to  be.  He  sent  word  home  that  night  of  how 
he  had  fared  and  the  next  day  received  several 
messages  of  congratulation.  One  message  from 
Jessie  he  prized  very  highly,  for  she  wrote,  "  You 


300      DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

deserve  a  big  hug  for  coming  through  so  finely. 
My  very  best  wishes."  The  other  boys  also  got 
congratulations;  and  that  night  and  the  night  to 
follow  were  "  bonfire  nights,"  in  more  ways  than 
one. 

"  Well,  we  are  rid  of  Haskers,  and  also  Mer- 
well  and  Jasniff,"  remarked  Roger  to  Dave. 
"We  ought  to  be  happy,  eh,  Dave?" 

"  Yes,  and  especially  over  coming  out  so  well 
for  graduation,"  answered  Dave 

"  Do  you  think  we'll  ever  see  Haskers  or  Mer- 
well  again?"  questioned  Phil. 

"  I  don't  know — I  trust  not,"  answered  our 
hero.  But  his  wish  was  not  fulfilled.  He  did 
meet  the  pair,  and  in  a  most  unexpected  fashion, 
as  will  be  related  in  the  next  volume  of  this  series, 
to  be  called  "  Dave  Porter  in  the  Gold  Fields;  or, 
The  Search  for  the  Landslide  Mine,"  in  which  we 
will  learn  how  Dave  went  West  with  some  of  his 
chums,  and  joined  an  old  prospector  in  a  hunt  for 
a  lost  mine  that  had  been  willed  to  Roger  Morr's 
mother. 

The  graduation  exercises  at  Oak  Hall  that  year 
formed  a  gala  event  long  to  be  remembered.  The 
school  and  the  campus  were  crowded,  and  Dave 
and  his  chums  surprised  even  Doctor  Clay  by 
"  chipping  in  "  and  hiring  a  brass  band  to  play 
outside,  after  the  exercises  were  over.  The  boys 
also  presented  their  teachers  and  the  master  with 


GOOD-BY  TO  OAK  HALL  301 

some  volumes  of  history  and  poetry,  and  received 
numerous  gifts  in  return.  From  his  father  Dave 
got  a  bank-book,  with  an  amount  written  therein 
that  was  a  complete  surprise.  His  sister  gave  him 
a  neat  stickpin  and  his  uncle  a  set  of  books, 
and  from  Jessie  and  her  folks  came  a  desk  set,  of 
solid  silver,  suitably  engraved. 

"  Well,  I  think  I  ought  to  be  the  happiest  boy 
alive,"  said  Dave,  after  the  exercises  were  over, 
and  he  had  his  diploma,  tied  with  a  broad  ribbon. 
"  I  feel  just  as  if  I  was  walking  on  air." 

"  And  I  am  glad,  too,"  said  his  sister  Laura, 
warmly. 

"  We  are  all  glad,"  put  in  Jessie,  and  gave  him 
her  brightest  smile. 

"  Glad  and  proud,  Dave,"  said  his  father. 
"  My  boy,  you  have  done  very  well." 

And  then  the  whole  party  went  down  to  the 
gymnasium,  where  refreshments  were  being  served 
to  the  visitors.  And  here  let  us  leave  Dave  Porter, 
wishing  him  well. 


THE   END 


DAVE   PORTER   SERIES 

By  EDWARD  STRATEMEYER 
12mo    Cloth    Illustrated    $1.25  per  volume 


"Mr.  Stratemeyer  has  seldom  introduced  a 
more  popular  hero  than  Dave  Porter.  He  is  a 
typical  boy,  manly,  brave,  always  ready  for  a 
good  time  if  it  can  be  obtained  in  an  honorable 
way." — Evening  Wisconsin,  Milwaukee,  Wis. 

"Edward  Stratemeyer's  'Dave  Porter'  has 
become  exceedingly  popular." — Boston  Globe. 

"Dave  and  his  friends  are  nice,  manly  chaps." 
—  Times- Democrat,  New  Orleans. 


DAVE  PORTER  AT  OAK  HALL 

Or  The  Schooldays  of  an  American  Boy 

DAVE  PORTER  IN  THE  SOUTH  SEAS 

Or  The  Strange  Cruise  of  the  Stormy  Petrel 

DAVE  PORTER'S  RETURN  TO  SCHOOL 

Or  Winning  the  Medal  of  Honor 

DAVE  PORTER  IN  THE  FAR  NORTH 

Or  The  Pluck  of  an  American  Schoolboy 

DAVE  PORTER  AND  HIS  CLASSMATES 

Or  For  the  Honor  of  Oak  Hall 

DAVE  PORTER  AT  STAR  RANCH 

Of  The  Cowboy's  Secret 

DAVE  PORTER  AND  HIS  RIVALS 

Or  The  Chums  and  Foes  of  Oak  Hall 

DAVE  PORTER  ON  CAVE  ISLAND 

Or  A  Schoolboy's  Mysterious  Mission 

DAVE  PORTER  AND  THE  RUNAWAYS 

Or  Last  Days  at  Oak  Hall 


LOTHROP,  LEE  &  SHEPARD  CO.,  Publishers,  Boston 


THE  LAKEPORT  SERIES 

By  EDWARD   STRATEMEYER 
12mo    Cloth    Illustrated    $1.25  per  volume 


"The  author  of  the  Lakeport  Series,  Mr.  Ed- 
ward Stratemeyer,  is  well  known  for  his  delightful 
boys'  stories." — Philadelphia  Ledger. 

"The  Lakeport  Series,  by  Edward  Strate- 
meyer, is  the  lineal  descendant  of  the  better 
class  of  boys'  books  of  a  generation  ago." — 
Christian  Advocate ,  New  York. 

' '  The  Lakeport  Series  will  be  fully  as  popular 
as  the  author's  Dave  Porter  Series." — San  Fran- 
cisco Call. 


THE  GUN  CLUB  BOYS  OF  LAKEPORT 

Or  The  Island  Camp 

THE  BASEBALL  BOYS  OF  LAKEPORT 

Or  The  Winning  Run 

THE  BOAT  CLUB  BOYS  OF  LAKEPORT 

Or  The  Water  Champions 

THE  FOOTBALL  BOYS  OF  LAKEPORT 

Or  More  Goals  Than  One 

THE  AUTOMOBILE  BOYS  OF  LAKEPORT 

Or  A  Run  for  Fun  and  Fame 

THE  AIRCRAFT  BOYS  OF  LAKEPORT 

Or  Rivals  of  the  Clouds 

LOTHROP,  LEE  &  SHEPARD  CO.,  Publishers,  Boston 


PAN-AMERICAN  SERIES 

By  EDWARD  STRATEMEYER 


VOLUME  ONE 

LOST  ON  THE  ORINOCO 

Or  American  Boys  in  Venezuela 

12mo    Cloth    Illustrated    Price  $1.25 

THIS  volume  tells  of  five  American  youths,  who,  with  their  tutor,  sail 
from  New  York  to  La  Guayra,  touching  at  Curacao  on  the  way. 
They  visit  Caracas,  go  westward  to  the  Gulf  of  Maracaibo  and  lake  of 
the  same  name,  and  at  last  find  themselves  in  the  region  of  the  mighty 
Orinoco,  and  of  course  they  have  some  exciting  experiences,  one  of  which 
gives  name  to  the  book. 

Its  pictures  of  South  American  life  and  scenery  are  novel  and  instructive.— 
The  Literary  World,  Boston. 

The  scenes  described  are  of  the  sort  to  charm  the  hearts  of  adventurous  boys,— 
The  Outlook,  N.  T. 

VOLUME  TWO 

THE  YOUNG  VOLCANO  EXPLORERS 

Or  American  Boys  in  the  West  Indies 

12mo    Cloth    Illustrated    Price  $125 

"THE  boys,  with  their  tutor,  sail  from  Veaczuela  to  the  West  Indies, 
*  stopping  at  Jamaica,  Cuba,  Hayti,  and  Porto  Rico.  They  have 
numerous  adventures  on  the  way,  and  then  set  out  for  St.  Pierre,  Mar- 
tinique, where  they  encounter  the  effects  of  the  eruption  of  Mt.  Pelee, 
and  two  of  the  boys  are  left  on  a  raft  to  shift  for  themselves  Life  in  the 
West  Indies  is  well  portrayed. 

VOLUME  THREE 

YOUNG  EXPLORERS  OF  THE  ISTHMUS 
Or  American  Boys  in  Central  America 

306  pages     Cloth     Illustrated  by  A.  B.  Shute     Price  $1.25 

DELATES  adventures  in  a  tour  covering  Nicaragua,  Costa  Rica, 
^  *■  and  the  Isthmus  of  Panama.  The  party  travel  the  various  canal 
routes,  and  have  a  number  of  highly  interesting  experiences  The  vol- 
ume contains  a  vast  amount  of  timely  information,  and  will  be  read  witi> 
interest  by  young  men  as  well  as  boys. 


PAN-AMERICAN  SERIES 

By   EDWARD    STRATEflEYER 


VOLUME  FOUR 
YOUNG  EXPLORERS  OF  THE  AMAZON 
Or  American  Boys  in  Brazil 

300  pages    12mo    Illustrated  by  A.  B.  Shute    Price,  $1.25 

T~"HE  five  boys  and  their  tutor  travel  the  whole  seacoast  from  Rio  de 
*•    Janeiro  to  Para,  and  then  move  up  the  Amazon.     The  volume  is 
filled  with  pen-pictures  of  life  as  it  exists  in  Brazil  to-day. 

"The  Pan-American  Serie9  by  Edward  Stratemeyer  has  been  declared  by  the 
boys  of  this  country  to  be  the  most  up-to-date  of  all  reading  for  the  young.  Killed 
with  action  and  good  fellowship." —  Wciverley  Magazine. 

VOLUME  FIVE 

TREASURE  SEEKERS  OF  THE  ANDES 

Or  American  Boys  in  Peru 

310  pages       Illustrated  by  Charles  Nuttall       Price,  $1.25 

""PHIS  volume  takes  the  young  explorers  from  the  head  of  the  Amazon 
*■     River  to  the  coast  of  Peru  and  then  into  the  mighty  snow-topped 
mountains.     One  of  the  boys  obtains  possession  of  a  secret  regarding  a 
Spanish  treasure  and,  with  a  companion,  goes  in  quest  of  the  same. 

"Mr.  Stratemeyer  [has  acquired  the  art  of  weaving  a  good  deal  of  solid  infor- 
mation with  his  web  of  startling  adventure." — San  Francisco  Bulletin. 

VOLUME  SIX 
CHASED  ACROSS  THE  PAMPAS 

Or  American  Boys  in  Argentina  and 
Homeward  Bound 

Illustrated      12mo      Cloth      Price,  $1.25 

"PHIS  final  volume  in  the  " Pan-American  Series"  gives  a  true-to-life 
•*■    picture  of  doings  in  the  southern  portion  of  South  America.    A  volume 
filled  with  adventure  and  also  packed  with  useful  information. 


COLONIAL  SERIES 

By  EDWARD  5TRATEMEYER 

FIRST  VOLUME 

WITH  WASHINGTON  IN  THE  WEST 

Or  a  Soldier  Boy's  Battles  in  the  Wilderness 

Illustrated  by  A.  B.  Shute    302  pages     $1.25 

MR.  STRATEMEYER  has  woven  into  an  excellent  story  something 
of  Washington's  youthful  experience  as  a  surveyor,  leading  on 
to  the  always  thrilling  Braddock's  defeat.  The  hero,  David  Morris, 
is  several  years  younger  than  Washington,  with  whom  he  becomes 
intimately  associated.  Pictures  of  pioneer  life  are  given  ;  scenes  with 
friendly  Indians ;  and  old-time  games. 

SECOND  VOLUME 

MARCHING  ON  NIAGARA 

Or  The  Soldier  *Boys  of  the  Old  Frontier 

Illustrated  by  A.  B.  Shute    Price  $1.25 

THE  story  relates  the  doings  of  two  young  soldiers  who  join  the 
Colonial  forces  in  a  march  on  Fort  Niagara,  during  the  time  of 
the  war  with  France,  when  the  whole  territory  between  the  Blue 
Ridge  and  the  Great  Lakes  was  in  a  state  of  unrest.  Many  side  lights 
are  thrown  into  the  colonial  homes,  and  much  useful  information  is 
given  of  the  pioneers  who  helped  to  make  our  country  what  it  is  to-day. 

David  Morris  is  a  fine  fellow,  and  about  him  is  woven  a  fine  "Injun"  story  that 
Is  sure  to  delight  the  boys. —  Universalist  Leader,  Boston. 

THIRD  VOLUME 

cAT  THE  FALL  OF  MONTREAL 

Or  a  Soldier  'Boy's  Final  Victory 

Illustrated  by  A.  B.  Shute    Price  $1.25 

THIS  volume  relates  the  adventures  of  Dave  Morris  and  his  cousin 
Henry  during  the  two  last  campaigns  against  the  French  for  the 
possession  of  Canada  and  the  territory  below  the  great  lakes.  The  scal- 
ing of  the  heights  of  Quebec  under  General  Wolfe,  and  the  memorable 
battle  on  the  Plains  of  Abraham,  are  given  in  detail.  There  are  many 
stirring  scenes  of  battle,  and  there  are  also  adventures  while  fishing  and 
hunting,  and  with  the  Indians. 

The  chief  charm  of  Mr.  Stratemeyer's  stories  lies  in  the  fact  that  an  enormous 
Quantity  of  valuable  information,  collected  from  the  most  reliable  sources,  is 
deftly  woven  into  the  narrative  without  taking  away  from  the  interest.— 
Philadelphia  Inguirtr* 


COLONIAL  SERIES 

By  EDWARD  STRATEriEYER 

FOURTH  VOLUME 

ON  THE  TRAIL  OF  PONTIAC 

Or  Pioneer  Boys  of  the  Ohio 

Illustrated  by  A.  B.  Shute    Price  $1.25 

|  'HIS  volume   tells  of  times  in  our  country  immediately  after  the  war 

•  with  France  for  the  possession  of  Canada.  A  fight  with  the  Indians 
and  the  French  in  a  snowstorm  is  especially  realistic,  and  the  entire  book 
carries  with  it  the  atmosphere  of  colonial  times. 

Boys  are  attracted  to  stories  by  Edward  Stratemeyer,  and  they  will  enjoy  "On 
the  Trail  of  Pontiac." — Plain  jjealer,   Cleveland,   O, 

VOLUME  FIVE 

THE  FORT  IN  THE  WILDERNESS 

Or  The  Soldier  Boys  of  the  Indian  Trails 

306  pages    Illustrated  by  A.  B   Shute    Price  $1.25 

""THIS  story  is  one  of  the  best   tales  of  Colonial  days  penned  by  this 

*  favorite  author  for  young  people.  A  central  figure  is  the  noted 
Indian  warrior,  Pontiac,  and  the  particulars  are  given  of  the  rise  and  fall 
of  that  awful  conspiracy  against  the  whites,  which  will  never  be  forgotten, 
and  vivid  pen  pictures  are  given  of  fights  in  and  around  the  forts  and  at  a 
trading-post  on  the  Ohio. 

VOLUME  SIX 

TRAIL  AND  TRADING  POST 

Or  The  Young  Hunters  of  the  Ohio 

320  pages    Illustrated    Price  $1.25 

A  FINE  closing  volume  to  this  deservingly  popular  series.  Here  we 
again  meet  the  Morris  boys,  and  many  other  friends.  The  plot 
centres  about  the  possession  of  a  certain  trading-post  on  the  Ohio  River  at 
a  time  just  previous  to  the  Revolution,  and  there  are  some  encounters 
with  the  unfriendly  Indians  and  with  some  Frenchmen  who  wished  to 
claim  the  post  as  their  own. 

There  are  few  authors  whose  books  have  so  wide  and  so  thoroughly  satisfactory 
i  reading  as  those  by  Mr.  Stratemeyer. — Courier,  Boston 


SOLDIERS  OF  FORTUNE  SERIES 

By  EDWARD  STRATEMEYER 

VOLUME  ONE 

ON  TO  PEKIN 

Or  Old  Glory  in  China 

Cloth    330  pages    Illustrated  by  A.  B.  Shute    $1.25 

THE  hero,  Gilbert  Pennington,  goes  from  the  Philippines  with  the 
Ninth  Regiment  to  take  part  in  the  rescue  of  the  beleaguered  Brit- 
ish Embassy  at  Pekin  by  the  international  forces.  Mr.  Stratemeyer  has 
risen  to  the  occasion  by  giving,  in  addition  to  one  of  his  very  best  stories, 
a  store  of  information  concerning  China  and  the  Chinese,  conveyed  in  a 
natural  and  entertaining  manner. 

The  demands  of  boy  readers  are  peculiar,  and  the  author  who  can  sat- 
isfy them,  not  once  or  twice,  but  aniformly,  must  possess  rare  ability  in 
an  extremely  difficult  field.  Such  an  author  is  Edward  Stratemeyer.  — 
Sunday  News.,  Newark,  N.  y. 

VOLUME  TWO 

UNDER  THE  MIKADO S  FLAG 

Or  Young  Soldiers  of  Fortune 

370  pages    Cloth    Illustrated  by  A.  B.  Shute    Price  $1.25 

"'  "I  TNDER  the  Mikado's  Flag"  relates  the  adventures  of  two  young 
V—'  Americans  in  Korea  and  Manchuria  during  the  outbreak  of  the 
great  war  between  Russia  and  Japan,  one  of  the  leading  characters  being 
Gilbert  Pennington,  the  hero  of  "On  to  Pekin,''  and  the  other,  Ben 
Russell,  who  with  his  brothers,  Larry  and  Walter,  is  so  well  known  to  the 
thousands  of  readers  of  the  famous  "Old  Glory  Series."  It  closes  with 
the  great  Battle  of  Liao-Yang,  and  is  as  valuable  for  the  information 
conveyed  as  it  is  interesting  as  a  story. 

Mr.  Stratemeyer  is  undoubtedly  improving  very  greatly  on  the  average 
book  for  boys.  —  Star,  St.  Louis,  Mo. 

He  knows  how  to  attract  and  hold  boy  readers.  —Evening  Standard^ 
Ntw  Bedford^  Mats, 


SOLDIERS  OF  FORTUNE  SERIES 

By   EDWARD  STRATEMEYER 

VOLUME  THREE 

AT  THE  FALL  OF  TORT  ARTHUR 

Or  A  Young  American  in  the  Japanese  Navy 

300  pages     Illustrated  by  A.  B.  Shute     Price  $1.25 

THIS  story  relates,  primarily,  the  adventures  of  Larry  Russell, 
who  is  on  board  his  old  ship,  the  Columbia,  which  is  carry- 
ing a  cargo  for  the  Japanese  government.  The  young  sailor  joins 
the  Japanese  navy,  and  under  Admiral  Togo  assists  at  the  bombard- 
ment of  Port  Arthur.  Life  in  the  Japanese  navy  is  described  in 
detail,  and  also  life  in  Port  Arthur  during  the  siege  and  bombard- 
ment, which  has  few  parallels  in  history. 

"  At  the  Fall  of  Port  Arthur"  is  very  well  told.  —  Chronicle,  San  Francisco, 
A  rattling  good  story  for  boys.  —  Republican,  Denver,  Col. 

VOLUME  FOUR 

UNDER  TOGO  FOR  JAPAN 

Or  Three  Young  Americans  on  Land  and  Sea 

310  pages     Illustrated  by  A.  B.  Shute     12mo     Cloth,  1.25 

THE  "  Soldiers  of  Fortune  Series  "  is  a  continuation  of  the  famous 
"  Old  Glory  Series,"  and  enjoys  equal  popularity.  The  prin- 
cipal characters  are  Ben  and  Larry  Russell,  Gilbert  Pennington, 
and  the  fine  old  gunner,  Luke  Striker,  all  of  whom  are  well  known 
to  thousands  of  readers.  The  climax  of  the  book  naturally  deals 
with  the  battle  of  the  Sea  of  Japan  and  Admiral  Togo^  wonderful 
victory,  in  which  Larry  and  Luke  Striker  bear  an  honorable  part. 
The  fortunes  of  Ben  and  Gilbert  Pennington  on  land  also  furnish 
much  that  is  of  interest. 

The  youth  who  finds  a  good  story  of  war  adventure  on  the  sea  to  his  liking  will  gain 
his  heart's  desire  in  "  Under  Togo  for  Japan."  —  Philadelphia  Press. 

Young  readers  will  find  the  volume  entertaining  from  first  to  last.  —  News,  Balti' 
more,  Md. 

Will  undoubtedly  prove  a  favorite  with  the  boys.  — Advertiser,  Newark,  N.J. 

No  more  popular  book  for  boys  could  be  imagined  just  at  this  time.  —  Christian  Sn» 
deavor  World. 


SCHOOL  OF  INFORMATION 
AND  LIBRARY  SCIENCE 

THE  LIBRARY  OF  THE 

UNIVERSITY  OF 

NORTH  CAROLINA 

AT  CHAPEL  HILL 


ENDOWED  BY  THE 

DIALECTIC  AND  PHILANTHROPIC 

SOCIETIES 


